The Accidentally True Story of a Not So Simple Lie
by whereinthewrld
Summary: It’s been two years since Cameron’s family died, two years since she ran away and two years since she’s seen her cousin Pogue. She just wanted to forget about her old life in Ipswich, about everything she left behind; too bad destiny had different plans.
1. To Early to Function

**This is my first Covenant fanfiction, any feed back you can give me would be greatly appreciated.

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_"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending."_- Maria Robinson

**Pogue POV**

When the sharp ringing of my cell phone sounded, the only thing I wanted to do was turn back over and fall asleep. I grabbed my pillow and used it to cover my ears. It didn't matter that it was summer vacation, 2 am was still an ungodly hour to be awoken by anything, let a long a frekin' phone call.

"Dear god Pogue," Reid moaned, clearly as angry as I was to be woken up "who the heck is calling you?"

The ringing still didn't stop; annoyed I threw my pillow away before getting up to find the stupid phone.

I fumbled around my dark room, flipping on the light in an attempt to locate my ringing cell phone. By this time Caleb and Tyler had been woken up too, and judging by the look on their faces they were just as happy to be up as Reid was.

"Shut up and help me find the stupid phone." I grumbled, shifting through a pile of clothes on the floor. Nope, not there. Where the heck could it be?

"Here." Reid said, throwing the plastic phone at me without warning. I caught it, glancing at the caller I.D before answering it.

"Hey Dad." I responded.

"It's your Dad?" Tyler imputed, speaking to loudly and causing everyone to flinch at the sudden loudness "Sorry, it's just, didn't your Dad and Mom go to Boston for something? What are they calling you for?"

I shrugged and watched as Caleb elbowed Tyler in the ribs, motioning with his fingers for the younger boy to be quite.

"_Pogue, something's come up. I need you to do something for me."_

"Sure Dad," I said, rubbing my eyes, wondering what he could possibly want me to do at two in the morning "what do you need?"

"_I need you to go to my study. In the bottom right hand draw of my desk there should be a manila folder."_

"Ok," I walked out of my bedroom and down the stairs into my father's study. I wasn't exactly surprised when others chose to follow me. "What do you need me to do with it?"

"_I need you to bring it to me."_

"Dad," I protested, unable to resist my curiosity I opened the folder "it's two, what's so important that you need me to drive to Boston right now?"

As soon as I glanced at the papers inside, I understood. A birth certificate, a collection of newspaper articles, pictures and various other papers were inside. Each of them held one thing in common. Each of them was about the younger cousin I hadn't seen in two years.

"_It's Cameron, Son, we found her."_

I let the phone drop out of my hand and, as it hit the floor with a bang, I realized one thing. My life as I knew it was over.


	2. Counting the Ways

_"Sometimes it's the smallest decisions that can change your life forever."_ –Keri Russell

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I had been sitting in the police station for almost four hours before they actually showed up. My aunt and my uncle. At first they just looked at me, hardly believing it was actually me. Not that I blamed them, I was having the same trouble.

I hadn't seen them in two years. But to be completely honest, I wanted it to be longer. I wanted to stay hidden in my own world forever. Apparently they had different plans though, because as soon as Aunt Trixi saw me she ran over, grabbing me up into a tight hug before she began sobing hysterically.

"Cammie," she whispered "oh, Cammie. I thought I'd never see you again."

"Hey Aunt Trixi, Uncle Wayne" I tried to fake a smile, tried to make them believe I was happy. But, as the look on my uncle's face suggested, they didn't believe it. Not even for a second.

My aunt finally relinquished her hug, allowing me to breathe once again. "Sweet heart," she said, pushing a stray piece of hair behind my ear "we never stopped looking for you. How could you do this to us?" She demanded, beginning to look a little angry.

"Beatrice," my uncle said, cutting me off before I could answer. Thankfully, I had no idea what to say. "Why don't you go talk to the police officers, see what we need to do to get this straightened out."

She nodded before leaving the room. I watched as she walked over to a police officer and began questioning him, glancing back into the glass room every so often to check and make sure I hadn't just disappeared. My uncle cleared his throat and I knew that ignoring him was no longer a good idea. I looked at him, he looked at me and I couldn't help but wonder what happened between the two of us.

_Oh yeah, I survived a car crash that killed his brother, sister-in-law and nephew. _

"Cameron," he said, desperately trying to think of words "I-It's just-Why?" He finally managed to get out.

He had no idea, no one did. _I'm sure they all just assumed I ran away because of what happened. They probably thought I was 'emotionally compromised'_, _like that stupid councilor kept telling them I was. _

I shrugged in response to his question, not really sure what to say or how to say it.

"Was it because of what happened? Was it because of your parents and brother?" He looked uncertain of how to talk to me.

"No," I stammered, walking up and giving him a slight hug before backing off "I just needed some space."

"Cammie, you were gone for over two years. We looked everywhere for you. We hired private investigators, we put out an amber alert, put poster everywhere and we still couldn't find you. When your parents died," I flinched at this and it didn't go unnoticed by my uncle "they left you in our care. Do you have any idea what it was like having no idea where you were? How upset Pogue was? How upset all the sons were? Your brother was one of their best friends, they already lost him, and then they had to lose you too."

He finished his rant and looked at me like he had no idea who I was. He didn't, at least, not anymore. Way too many things had happened since I left; things were probably never going to be the same.

"Honey," Aunt Trixi said, popping her head into the room "they said the need proof of guardianship before they can release her into our custody. "

"Already," he sighed, running his hand through his hair "I'll call Pogue." He left the room to make the call, coming back in less than two minutes later. "He's surprised, but he's coming and brining the papers."

Pogue, he had always been more like an older brother then an older cousin. My brother Eric and he were only a couple of months apart, and growing up they had been extremely close. After my birth Pogue had assumed all the same roles as Eric. Still, after all this time, chances were things had changed…drastically.

"Cameron, we have to establish some boundaries." My aunt said, trying to sound as reasonable as possible "You need to understand, we never want anything like this to happen again. So, until further notice you're grounded. We don't want to upset you, but we need to know that we can trust you."

I don't exactly blame them, but it didn't really matter, first chance I got I was planning on making a run for it. We waited the next hour in the same room, them asking me questions about myself.

_So what have you been up to?_

_What have you been doing for school?_

_What's your favorite color?_

_When did you cut your hair?_

All pointless questions that really, why did they matter? We had lost time; they didn't need to try and make up for it. Finally, after what seemed like a year, Pogue ran into the room, face red and holding a file folder. He had gotten tall, he wasn't the awkward little fifteen year old he had been last time we had seen each other. But to be fair, I definitely wasn't the thirteen year old I had been.

"Here Dad." He said handing over the folder before his dad left the room. His expression betrayed nothing as he looked me over, trying to find some trace of the little girl that he had once known. There wasn't any. I had changed, and so had he.

"Cammie?" He asked uncertainly. I simply nodded, not knowing what to say.

"Isn't it wonderful Pogue? She's back." Aunt Trixi said, trying to ease the strange situation. It didn't work, not by a long shot. Where years ago there had been a strong bound, a healthy relationship, a connection many couldn't understand, there was now nothing. We were just strangers in a room.


	3. Trying to Understand

**A/N: Hey guys, I'd just like to thank you for reading my story and sticking with me!

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_"Life is the first gift, love is the second, and understanding the third_." –Marge Piercy

What do you say to someone you know is going to hate you for something you've done? Something you never intended to happen, especially when this person is someone who uses to mean the world to you? Someone who uses to take care of you, and someone you never, ever wanted to disappoint?

Nothing, you don't say anything to them.

At least, that's what I've decided. It didn't matter either way. I already hate myself far more than anyone else could.

"Yeah Mom," Pogue said, never once looking away from me "it's great."

I couldn't help it, the tears started to over flow, my legs began to buckle and I found myself kneeling on the floor, sobbing hysterically. Hugging myself, I tried to calm down. It was ridiculous, I was being childish, I wasn't supposed to be emotional. If there was anything that living on the streets taught me, it was that having control over your emotions was vital, because no one would be there to help you back up.

Right now, I was breaking all my rules, I was emotional, I was weak and it was killing me a little on the inside. "It's ok Cammie." Pogue said, kneeling down and grabbing me up into a hug. "It'll be alright. Don't worry, I'm here for you."

And just like that, it was almost as if I hadn't run away. It was like it had been before, when everything was so perfect and so simple. It was almost like something from my childhood, a time where he had always taken care of me, and I was happy to let him.

'_What's the matter Cameron?' Aaron Abbot demanded, shoving me onto the ground 'What kind of name is that anyway? _Cameron_, it sounds like you're a guy. That would make sense, considering you're so frekin' UGLY.' He spat, laughing at my quivering form._

'_Please, just leave me alone.' I whisper timidly, not even sure what I did to provoke him in the first place. I had just been sitting at the park bench minding my own business when he came up and started harassing me. _

'_You'd like that wouldn't you?' He said, taking a step closer. 'Well, I don't usually do what people want me to.'_

'_Please,' I whimper, I was small, even for an eight year old, and he was eleven. I was seriously outmatched. _

'_Hey Abbot!' An angry voice shouted._

_Looking up I noticed four boys Aaron's age running towards us. My cousin Pogue and his friends, Reid, Tyler and Caleb. Crossing the playground faster than I thought possible, Pogue pulled Aaron away from me and began punching him in the face. 'You leave her alone Abbot, I swear,' he said, shoving Aaron hard 'if I EVER hear about you even looking at her again you're dead. You got that? I suggest you leave now.' _

After that Aaron didn't waist anytime before running out of the park. Pogue had made sure I was alright before giving me a piggyback ride back to his house. Times like that, where Pogue went out of his way to make sure I was safe, taking care of me like a little sister, those were the things I had missed more than anything while I was gone. Even right now, after everything that had happened, he had the ability to make me feel perfectly at ease with one simple hug.

I couldn't help but hug back, it just felt so right. The tears stopped, and he picked me up off the ground like he had so many times before. "Let's go home Kid." He said, patting me on the back and picking up my one bag before steering me out of the little glass room.

"Hey Dad." Pogue said, making his presence known to his father who had just finished his conversation with a police officer.

"Hey Son," he gave him a slight smile before looking me over, no doubt noticing my still red eyes. "They said we could take you home, Cameron. I've singed all the necessary paper work, they just want to give you a tracking bracelet for the first couple of months to make sure you don't go anywhere you're not supposed to."

That did it, the unnecessary gesture of taking me into their home I could handle, but being put on house arrest? That, I _couldn't_ take. "So what? Now I'm under house arrest? You're going to track my every movement?"

Pogue hugged my shoulder tighter, trying to comfort me. "No Cammie," Uncle Wayne tried to reason with me "you're not under house arrest; they just want to make sure that you don't go anywhere you're not supposed to. And honestly, I agree with that decision."

"So, what? Probation?" Uncle Wayne bit his lip, but that was answer enough "That's what I thought."

I pushed out of Pogue's hold and began making my way toward an exit door. A strong hand grabbed my arm and pulled me back, reflexively I lashed out, desperate to get out of the hold. It didn't work, Pogue was much stronger then I was. "Let go of me!" I demanded, instead he just dragged me back over to his parents.

"Cameron," Aunt Trixi explained "this is exactly why. We can't risk having you try to run every time our back is turned. It'll just be for a little while. Please Honey."

"No," I couldn't be trapped in one place, I couldn't risk being around them longer than necessary. "Please, please." I begged.

"It'll be ok Cammie," Pogue whispered to me "I'm here for you."

Reluctantly I let a police officer attach the ankle bracelet before following my aunt and uncle outside. Pogue stuck by my side, holding my shoulders and looking at me every so often to make sure I hadn't gone anywhere.

I felt terrible. If he was this upset about me leaving the first time, what was it going to be like when I left again? But I didn't have a choice, not really.

"Pogue, did you really have to bring _all_ the sons?" Uncle Wayne asked, looking at a silver hummer that occupied the space next to the Porsche I knew was my uncles.

"Sorry Dad," Pogue apologized "when I told them what was going on they insisted on coming, and well, you know then guys when they make up their mind."

"Alright, well, we need Cameron to go with you," Really, did they _have_ to talk like I wasn't there? "We don't have enough room in the car."

"Got it, let's go Cammie." He led me over to the car, opening one of the back doors and motioning for me to get it before he slid in and shut the door. Four pairs of eyes were on me, to my right sat Reid, in the driver's seat Tyler and in the passenger seat there was Caleb.

"Um, hi Guys." I supplied, adding in a little hand wave.

"Heyyy Cameron," Reid said, "long time no see."

"Yeah, it's been a while."

"So, where you been?" he asked.

"Reid," Caleb, the leader of them snapped, giving him a look that clearly said 'Don't go there man.'

"Fine, fine." Reid grumbled as Tyler pulled out of the parking lot and headed out into the night.


	4. Unexpected Results

_"Enjoy when you can, and endure when you must."_ ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

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We had been in the car for about fifteen minutes before my eyes began to droop. I felt kinda rude, considering Reid was trying to have a conversation with me…Ok, he was actually the one doing all the talking, but still.

I was tired, except I really didn't want to fall asleep right now, or anytime soon for that matter. It would be weird, sleeping in a car filled with teenage boys only two years older than myself. Not to mention I had to think, I needed to devise a plan. A plan involving somehow getting the stupid bracelet off my ankle without alerting someone and _still_ having enough time to make a run for it. I will still planning on leaving when I got the chance; I had to, even if it was good to see my family again. The longer I stayed around, the more I'd want to stay, the more I'd want to stay, the more comfortable I'd get, and the more comfortable I'd get, the more I'd give away. I couldn't risk giving anything away; I couldn't risk anyone discovering my secret.

It had happened before, when I was living on the streets, someone would make certain connections and then things would get bad. Really bad. But right here, with Pogue and Reid next to me, I felt more comfortable then I had in a long time. I felt welcome, and safe and like I belonged. Things that I could barely even recognized.

Still, no sleep. Sleep meant wasted time and I couldn't afford that. So, instead of succumbing to my wilting eye lids, I pinched myself in the leg. The sudden pain, even if it was self inflicted, caused me to sit up suddenly, earning me a look of confusing from the boys.

"You ok?" Reid asked

"Yeah," I reassured, trying to stifle a yawn "sorry."

Pogue noticed, and laughed slightly. "Sure you are kid." He said, pulling my head against his shoulder. "Just go asleep."

"No, I'm fine." I looked up at Pogue as I spoke. He's mouth twitched into a slightly smile and he opened his mouth to say something but thought better of it. As I was looking at his face, the strangest thing happened. For a split second, I could have sworn his eyes flashed black. But before I could say or do anything my eyes began to once again drift shut, and this time there was no denying it.

I felt the familiar sensation of sleep washing over my body and couldn't help but wonder if what I'd seen was just in my imagination or not. Pogue's eyes couldn't have flashed black, because to me, that meant one thing only. It meant the use of a supernatural power I was all too familiar with; a power that, as far as I knew, I was the only one that had it. A power that had lead to the death of my parents and my only brother.

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**Pogue POV**

I watched as Cameron drifted off into sleep, her body perfectly still and at peace. She was exhausted, I couldn't blame her, I was tiered too.

"Pogue, you didn't need to Use," Caleb snapped irritably "she would have fallen asleep by herself eventually."

No, she wouldn't have. I knew Cammie; she was probably one of the most stubborn individuals I had ever met.

"Come on Caleb," Reid retaliated "you remember what she was like as a kid. She was stubborn as hell, and by the look of things that hasn't changed much."

_Go Reid_, I couldn't help but laugh slightly at the annoyed look on Caleb's face. Reid had just voiced exactly what I had been thinking.

"Why do you think she didn't wanna go to sleep?" Tyler said, changing the subject.

"Don't know," I confessed "but there's something she's not saying. I'm sure of it. I'm worried that I'm going to look away for a second and she's not going to be there when I look back. She already tried to make a break for it once."

"What do you think she's hiding?" Caleb asked

"No idea, but I'm almost 100% sure it has to do with why she left in the first place. Either way, I'm going to need all of your help making sure she doesn't take off again. I already put a tracking spell on her, but something tells me that's not going to be enough."

"What about the nice little tracking anklet thingy she has on?" Reid asked, gesturing to the floor.

"I give it a week before she finds a way to get it off without anyone noticing." I said, knowing full well that Cameron was much smarter than she'd ever let anyone know.

"Yeah, don't worry about it. We'll keep an eye on her. She's your cousin, which makes her our family too."

"Thanks Caleb." I whisper, I was going to need their help to keep her around. But something told me that even with the four of us, it wasn't going to be that easy.

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**Cameron POV**

I woke up to a massive, pounding headache that made me wonder if I got hit in the head with a bowling ball. It wasn't a hangover…At least I thought it wasn't, I couldn't remember drinking. Actually, I couldn't even remember falling asleep. Still that wasn't saying much considering I had no idea where I was. I was on a bed, I didn't usually sleep in beds, I usually couldn't afford motel rooms. And the room was pink, who the heck had a pink room?

I sat up, looking around and noticed several other features of the room, including a collection of stuffed animals, a book shelve filled with books that were worn at the spin and a bed side table with a picture frame filled with a picture of a smiling family. My family. Staring back at me was a smiling version of my mother, a beaming version of my dad and an amused version of my brother. Nuzzled between my father and mother stood a much younger version of myself, my brown hair still waist length and eyes giving off the feeling of love.

I was in my room, at least, a room that had been given to me by my aunt and uncle after I had come to live with them. Even when I was thirteen I had hated the stupid pink walls and the collection of my old stuffed animals that had been placed in there in a desperate attempt to make me feel welcomed. Now, two years later, they were just a reminder of what was and could have been.

The picture frame just stood there, taunting me, it was annoying and disturbing. I moved it face down; no longer wanting to look at the faces of the people I had pretty much killed.

Navigating myself through the estranged halls was more difficult than I thought it would be. I remembered that when I was younger I had always thought the house was huge. Before, I had just assumed it was a byproduct of me being so small…It wasn't, the place was still absolutely massive. The kitchen was located what seemed to be miles away from my bedroom, at the very back of the house.

I entered it to find it already occupied with the boys who sat at a small breakfast table covered in a plethora of food. Upon my entrance they looked up, Reid gestured to the empty seat next to him and, with his mouth over flowing with food, said "So the sleeping beauty awakes, we thought you might have gone into a coma or something."

Laughing I made my way over to him, "Or something? That sounds serious."

He nodded sympathetically before turning back to his food.

"How'd you sleep?" Tyler asked me.

"Good, it was weird though. I woke up and had no idea where I was."

No one knew how to respond to that and, not knowing what to do, I looked at Pogue who was piling a second plate high with food. "Hungry?" I couldn't help but ask.

"It's for you." He explained, dropping the large plate in front of me with a slight grin. "Eat it. All of it."

"What? Why?" I asked, probing a stack of pancakes with a fork.

"Because you need it." He said, shaking his head slightly.

"Is that a crack about my weight?"

"What? No!" Pogue look surprised at my statement. "Why would you think that?"

"No reason." I muttered, shoving a piece of pancake in my mouth.

"Yeah Pogue," Reid said, snaking his arm around my shoulder "how could you say something like that? Look at her; she's so skinny I doubt she could eat even a quarter of that."

"I never said I couldn't eat it." I sighed, shrugging out of his hold

"Really? You expect me to actually believe you can eat all of that?" He asked, gesturing to the plate.

"Yeah."

"Are you willing to put your money on it?"

"Yep." I shoved another piece of pancake in my mouth before looking at his amused expression.

"How does $40 sound?"

"Like I'm unfairly taking your money." I couldn't help but grin at his smug expression.

"We'll see about that." He stuck out his hand, which I took and shook slightly before continuing to eat.

"You really don't have to prove anything to us." Caleb explained.

"I'm not." I really wasn't, I may be skinny, but I could eat as much as most teenage boys.

We sat there in silence, the boys watching as I devoured six pancakes, two pieces of toast, five pieces of bacon, three sausages, two fried eggs and a glass of orange juice before reaching for more food.

"When's the last time you ate?" Tyler asked incredulously.

Swallowing another piece of bacon I shrugged, honestly not remember the last time I had a full meal.

"You don't remember?" Pogue looked angry

"It's not like I was starving myself, I'd just forget to eat." I tried to explain, not bothering to tell him that one of the main reasons I never had a full meal was lack of money.

"How do you forget to eat?" Caleb's face mimicked Pogue, and looking at Tyler and Reid they both worse similar expressions.

"I, I just had more important things going on." They still didn't look convinced.

"What did you have going on that was more important than remembering to eat? If you forgot something as basic as eating, what else did you forget?"

I shifted uncomfortably, not sure how to respond to his sudden angry outburst. It was stupid of me, I shouldn't have said anything. I shouldn't have given anything away. "Nothing, it's just…Can we drop this?" I was done eating; a sick feeling had consumed me.

"No we can't drop this! What else have you forgotten about? What about school? Have you been doing anything about that?"

I was pissed, I had tried to eat breakfast in piece and even be sociable and it had turned into a verbal altercation between Pogue and me. Instead of answering his questions I pushed myself away from the table and walked toward the door, not interested in being near anyone. I needed time to cool down, if I didn't get it soon I might explode.

A strong hand grabbed my upper arm as, once again, Pogue prevented me from making an exit. "What?" I demanded.

"Why the hell do you keep running?" He yelled, not relinquishing his hold "Why can't you just talk to us Cammie? What happened to the younger cousin I know and love?"

"Pogue." Caleb tried to consul before turning to me "Cameron, what's going on? You need to talk to us."

"I don't need to do anything!" I fumed, trying to take my arm back, it didn't work. I needed to leave. A familiar sensation was filling my chest, I was having trouble breathing, and if I didn't calm down soon I was going to lose control. "You want to know what happened to the little girl you use to know? She's dead. She died that day along with the rest of her family."

"Cammie, I know losing them was hard but-"

"No!" I yelled, interrupting Pogue "You don't know _anything_."

"Then tell me!" We were both yelling at this point as the rest of the sons watched, unsure of what to do "Tell me why you're being so secretive, why you left in the first place... You can't keep running away from everything like this. I won't let you."

That's when I lost it. Pogue's declaration of what I could and couldn't do released the white hot anger contained within my chest. My anger lashed out in the form of energy. Pogue let go of my arm as if it was on fire and, at the same time, all the glass in the kitchen exploded.

I grabbed my head with my hands and tried to get myself to calm down before anything else happened. No one was hurt, thankfully, but they were all incredibly surprised.

"What the hell was that?" Reid asked.

I didn't know what to say, I didn't know what to do. Instead I turned from the kitchen, running as fast as I could from that room, that house and everything that made me leave in the first place.


	5. Remembering When

**Hey guys, thanks for sticking with the story. I just want to inform everyone of the time line, the story takes place the summer before the movie. So, the story actually takes place in early June.

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_"Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose"_

Even if it was summer, today was unexpectedly chilly and damp, it wasn't raining but it was still foggy. The cold air stabbed my lung with each jagged breath I took, but I didn't stop running. I let my legs carry me away from that place, the place where everything was just to perfect, where I couldn't possibly fit in. Maybe once, but not now, not after everything that had happened. I was a stain, a black spot amidst a flawlessly white back ground. The perfect imperfection, a freak.

What else could I possibly be? Who else could make glass explode purely using the power of their mind? Stupid anger, it had gotten the best of me once again. Whenever I got to angry I'd lose control, releasing a wave of power strong enough to knock the socks off of most people. It was weird, whenever I had been angry in the past, especially at a particular person in general, they were usually thrown backwards. Not Pogue, he had somehow managed to stay on his feat.

The _real_ issue is that I had no control over the telekinesis that I had somehow developed on my thirteenth birthday. Not that I spent much time trying to develop it, whenever I tried to control it or use it at all, it would leave me drained and week. My psychic visions on the other hand, I had developed. It was almost like I was more in tuned with the future then I was with the present.

For years I had been plagued with dreams while I was asleep and visions while I was awake, most of which would come true. I had developed enough control to bring certain visions on during the day, but even then my control was limited, only about a two minute window before the vision actually occurred. The clairvoyant dreams, however, were more difficult. Whenever those occurred they could be anywhere from two days to two years from actually happening.

Like the telekinesis, whenever I Used it would drain a little bit of energy. If too much energy was consumed, I could find myself in a coma, or even dead. Hence the inability to move anything with my mind unless it was involuntary, learning control wasn't really worth the consequences.

Not to mention the fact that I was actually scared of what I could do. What kind of person got visions of the future?

Oh, wait, _I_ do.

I found myself at a little park about three miles from Pogue's house, but only down the street from the house I had grown up in. The same park that Eric, my older brother, and Pogue had taken me to all the time during my child hood. I walked by the bench that, all those years ago, Aaron had pushed me off of and to the set of swings that lay beyond. I sat down, using my legs to pump myself, thinking about what I was going to do next.

I couldn't go back, I just couldn't. Not after the incident in the kitchen. Chances were they were happy to get rid of me anyway. Where would I go? Not back to Boston, that's where they found me and the first place they'd look when they realized I wasn't coming back. Maybe back to California. That's where I had spent a small chunk of myself imposed exile before I decided to come back. Back to Boston, the closest I ever ventured to Ipswich.

How would I get there? Well, a bus, that much was obvious. But that required money, money I didn't have on me. If I found a local bar it would be easy enough for me to hustle a couple hundred dollars from some poor unsuspecting chap. That still left the issue of the stupid ankle tracking bracelet, thingy. I'd need a knife or something to cut through the firm plastic, also easily attainable at a bar.

I had everything figured out. Now I just needed to follow through... But as I sat there, I found that I couldn't motivate myself to move. Instead, I couldn't help but think about who I'd be leaving behind if I left.

Aunt Trixi, Uncle Wayne, Caleb, Tyler, Reid and Pogue. Not even twenty four hours since meeting them again and I already felt incredibly connected to them. It sucked, but I had to leave, even If I didn't want to.

And for the second time in less than a day, I cried. Man, I was going soft.

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**Pogue POV**

The look on Cameron's face when I grabbed her arm was one of desperation. She was struggled against my hold, trying to break free. "What?" She demanded, face contorted in pain.

I couldn't stand it, her continuous running attempts. What would happen if she actually managed to get away? I couldn't deal with her leaving again. I couldn't, no, wouldn't lose her. "Why the hell do you keep running?" I found myself yelling at her. "Why can't you just talk to us Cammie? What happened to the younger cousin I know and love?" She uses to be so lively, so energetic. But the young women who stood in front of me was secretive and withdrawn, the polar opposite of the girl I had once known.

"Pogue." Caleb tried to calm me down, using his authoritative voice to remind me who was in charge. I let him speak; maybe he could get something out of her that I couldn't. "Cameron, what's going on? You need to talk to us."

Wrong word choice, because Cammie began struggling even harder against my tight hold. "I don't need to do anything! You wanna know what happened to the little girl you use to know? She's dead. She died that day along with the rest of her family."

Her words hit me like a ton of bricks. I hadn't been expecting that, I hadn't been expecting that she was still just as emotionally traumatized over her family's death as she was two years ago. It was stupid of me; it wasn't like you could get rid of your grief over night. Even I still had those times where I'd pick up my phone with the pretenses of calling Eric, only to remember I'd never hear his voice again. "Cammie, I know losing them was hard but-"

"No!" She yelled, interrupting me mid sentence. "You don't know _anything_."

"Then tell me!" I yelled, matching her volume. "Tell me why you're being so secretive, why you left in the first place. You can't keep running away from everything like this. I won't let you."

Cameron looked away from me, anger and frustration obvious based on body language. All of a sudden, two things happened at the exact same time. The arm I had my hand wrapped around suddenly let off a wave of painfully hot heat, reflexively I let go, stepping back as an explosion sounded and all the glass in the kitchen shattered.

Cammie, who had grabbed her head in pain, didn't look as surprised as I would have expected. Who the heck would be stupid enough to Use when she was around? I didn't even sense anything, but whoever it was, they were going to get their ass kicked as soon as the situation allowed.

"What the hell was that?" Reid asked and I barely contained an eye roll. _What the heck do you think that was you idiot?_

The situation must have caught up with Cammie because, before I had a chance to react, she bolted from the kitchen like the place was on fire. She needed a chance to cool off; I'd give it to her. It wasn't every day someone faced a random explosion. Man, this was going to be a hard one to explain.

"Ok, which one of you asses thought it was a good idea to Use?" I asked, turning around to face my three brothers. I couldn't help but single out Reid, he was the one who Used irrationally. I flashed my eyes black and all the glass pieces fused back to their original shape.

"It wasn't me!" He insisted, slightly insulted that I immediately assumed it was him.

"Then who was it? Because I didn't do it." Caleb input.

"It wasn't me," I said "Tyler, was it you?"

The younger boy looked slightly shocked at the question "No!"

"But if it wasn't Tyler, then who was it?" Reid asked looking at all of us.

"Pogue, are you sure it wasn't you?" Caleb said, shifted unsurely. "You were pretty angry; we all lose control once and a while. It could have been accidental."

"Yeah, well, I mean, I'm pretty sure." If he said it like that, I couldn't deny the possibility. Maybe I did lose control. We've all done it over the years, not so much now that we're older. But it still happen every once and a while. "But when you say it like that…"

"It's ok Pogue," Reid said, grinning mischievously "just because it hasn't happened to any of us since we were what, 13? Doesn't mean we're that much better then you."

"Shut up." I said, grabbing him in a head lock before messing up his beloved hair and shoving him away lightly.

"Where'd Cameron go?" Tyler asked.

"Don't know," Caleb sighed "after Pogue's little outburst she took of pretty fast."

"You guys aren't ever going to let this go, are you?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Not a chance." Reid said smugly

"What the heck are we going to tell Cammie?" Tyler asked "It's not like she didn't notice the massive explosion."

We stood there in silence for a minute, no one really sure what excuse we could use. After a couple of minutes Reid opened his mouth "What about an earthquake?"

"An earthquake?" I couldn't help but stare "An earthquake that just so happened to break glass but not cause any shaking?"

Reid nodded.

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

He opened his mouth to retaliate but Tyler cut him off "It's raining, maybe we should go find Cammie before she gets to wet. We'll think of something when we find her."

"You guys don't need to come with me." I told them. Caleb just shook his head.

"We're good. Do you know where she went?"

"I have a pretty good idea."

"I'll drive." Tyler volunteered, pulling his keys out of his pocket and walking out of the door, the three of us following behind.

* * *

**Cameron POV**

It was really stupid. I couldn't stop crying. It's not like I was sobbing. It was just a small, steady stream of tears that simply _wouldn't_ stop no matter how many times I told myself crying wasn't helping. Seriously, what did it do? Alleviate my emotional state? _No_, it just managed to make me sullen and angry at myself.

Stupid, stupid stressful situation. To make the situation worse, it had started to rain. At least no one could tell I was crying now, not that it really mattered. No one was around. I had been sitting there for about fifteen minutes, trying to convince myself to get up and start moving. It hadn't been going so well. Besides, it was only about noon, there really wasn't any place to go.

I shivered involuntarily as a cold gust of wind blew by. I hugged myself, trying to preserve my heat as my teeth began to chatter. A sudden weight was placed on my shoulders as Pogue draped his leather jacket around me. I quickly wrapped it around myself, looking at my cousin as he sat next to me on his own swing.

We didn't say anything for a while. Instead we just let the small patter of rain keep us company. "Do you remember that time when you were six years old and you got lost in the woods?" He asked me.

I did, I remembered it clearly. My mind flashed back to the time nine years ago when my brother had accidentally forgotten to pick me up from my first day of school.

_I had been sitting on the front steps of _Wilsons Elementary School_ for about three hours after school had gotten out. It was my first day; my mother had dropped_ _me off on her way to work with the promise that Erin would pick me up once school got out. He hadn't. I didn't really blame him, due to a mix up in paper work I had started school two weeks later then I should have. My brother was use to walking home by himself. If he could do it, I could too right? _

_Instead of waiting for someone like I was supposed to if I got lost, I decided to walk home by myself. Besides, I didn't lose them, they lost me! I walked up the street, entering a cross road that wove its way through the woods. I remembered my mommy driving through the woods that morning, so I followed it, walking for what seemed like forever before the road abruptly ended. I was confused, I knew that my mommy had gone through the woods to take me to my new school; maybe the rest of the road was behind the trees. _

_I entered the woods, walking about 100 feet before noticing there wasn't any other place to go. I turned around, but couldn't remember which way I had come from. I picked a direction at random, running forward to get out of the woods as fast as I could. But I couldn't find my way out. No matter which way I went there were more and more trees. I was getting scared, the sun was setting and I was afraid of the dark. _

_I sat down at the base of a tree, hugging my knees. The light cotton school uniform I was wearing did little to block out the cold air. Strange sounds began to fill the air. At this point, there was no light left; I didn't know what to do. I sat there for what felt like hours, scare, alone and convinced no one would ever find me._

_The sudden rustle of a bush and the snapping of twigs made me scream. "Cammie?" a voice asked._

_"Pogue?" I said, unsure if it really was him. _

_"Oh thank god, Cammie." He ran over to me, picked me up and looked at my ripped clothing and twig infested hair. "You scared us all so badly. Erin panicked when he went back for you and you weren't there. As soon as he realized you were gone he got Caleb, Tyler, Reid and me to help look for you."_

_"And you found me?" I asked._

_"Yeah, I found you." He whispered, pulling me into a hug._

_"You saved me Pogue, if you didn't find me, I, I don't know what would have happened!"_

_"I'm here for you Cammie; I'll always be here for you. I'll always be there to save you. Come on, let's go home." He said, before taking my hand and leading me out of the cold. _

"Yeah Pogue. I remember." I whisper, pumping my legs to get the swing in motion once again.

"Do you remember the promise I made you?" I nodded, sticking out my legs to bring the swing to a stop so I could look at him better. "I meant it Cammie, I'll always be here for you."

"Always?" I asked, wiping away a stray tear.

"Always." He clarified, standing up and looking at me. "Come on, let's go home." He said, before taking my hand and leading me out of the cold.


	6. Feel Like A Monster

"_I feel it deep within, it's just beneath the skin_  
_I must confess that I feel like a monster_  
_I hate what I've become, the nightmare's just begun_  
_I must confess that I feel like a monster"-_Skillet

* * *

"So Cammie," Reid said as I took my seat next to him in the Hummer. "Did you enjoy your little outing?"

"Shut up Reid!" I snapped, punching him in the arm. He pretended it didn't hurt, waiting till I looked away to mouth 'ouch'. "So Tyler, are you starting to feel like a taxi?" a small smile broke across my face as I said it.

"Nah, I don't mind. Especially if I'm giving pretty girls like you rides everywhere." Pogue reached over, slapping Tyler on the back of his head in a 'don't even think about it, she's off limits' sort of way.

"Eww, you're starting to sound like Reid!" I said, making a face and leaning back against the seat.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Reid asked, offended.

"Nothing, nothing at all." I couldn't help but smile because, in the first time in a long time, I was actually happy.

"At least I'm not grinning like an idiot." Reid retaliated.

"At least I'm _not_ an idiot." He didn't know what to say to that one "Oh, Garwin's speechless!"

"Shut up Parry!" That one earned him a glare from not just me, but Pogue too.

A content silence engulfed the car and I used it to think about what I was going to say to them, and how I was going to say it. "Listen guys, about what happened in the kitchen…" I began before Pogue cut me off.

"Don't worry about it Cammie. Sorry about the giant glass explosion, we don't usually get earth quakes in Massachusetts."

Looking around, I was glad I wasn't the only one giving Pogue a strange look. Reid looked triumphant, Tyler and Caleb just looked confused. An _earthquake_? Did he really think an earthquake somehow managed to break all that glass but not cause any notable shaking? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Whatever, if he thought that was the explanation, I wasn't going to correct him. "Yeah, weird."

After I spoke the boys looked relieved, as if they were afraid_ I'd _be the one pressing the situation farther. Something weird was going on, but I didn't want to get to into it. It would be just my luck to accidentally reveal something about myself while playing 'detective'.

A strange tickling sensation filled my nose and a barely managed to cover my nose before letting out a gigantic sneeze.

"You alright?" Someone asked, I was too busy sneering at my now snot covered hands to notice who. I covered my nose as another sneeze sounded, then another. Great… "Here." The same voice said, handing me a small stack of napkins from a random fast food restaurant. I eagerly cleaned off my hands and used the remaining napkins to cover my nose as fifteen more sneezes sounded before we pulled in front of my aunt and uncle's house ten minutes later.

Tyler finished parking and turned off the car as I let of another gigantic sneeze, using the last of the napkins to cover it up. "That's one sneeze to many. I don't like it." Pogue said, looking at me in a concerned manner.

"I'm sorry." I said apologetically, grabbing my now spinning head.

"It's not your fault."

"Well, she is the one who ran out of the house and got caught in the-ouch!" I looked over to see that Caleb had hit Reid, stopping him in mid sentence.

I laughed light, slightly disheartened when it broke out into a hacking cough. "That's it!" Pogue declared, pulling my out of the car and throwing me over his shoulders before he made his way into the house and up the stairs.

"I can walk." I said defensively.

"I'm sure you can." He said, placing me down in the upstairs bathroom. Handing me a towel, he pointed to the shower. "Shower, warm clothes then bed rest until farther notice."

"Pogue-" I protested.

"Cameron." He said, giving me a look that told me he wasn't going to budge on this one. "The last thing we need is for you to come down with a cold. I mean, is that really what you want?"

"No." I pouted, grabbing the towel and gesturing for him to leave. I stripped down, stepping in the shower and let the warm water relax my tense muscles and the plethora of bruises that always seemed to litter my skin.

The bruises I had accumulated from various street fights and run-ins with the law I've had. I was a fighter, always had been always would be. I was good at it too, actually. At least, much better than most people would expect someone of my size and weight to be.

I finished up my shower, wrapped my towel around my body and grabbed my wet clothes before walking down the hall into my bedroom. Looking around I tried to locate my trusty backpack, the one piece of luggage I always carried around with me. It held my meager possessions; three shirts, two pairs of underwear, one pair of jeans, a pair of boxers, a light jacket, my wallet ((complete with $27.43)), an old laptop, a pre-paid cell phone that was out of minutes, one family picture, a notebook and a _very_ warn out copy of _To Kill a Mocking Bird. _

The only down fall was that each of the possessions, with the exception of the picture, were incredibly warn out. Even the backpack and clothes had been purchased second hand. But they were all mine, I had bought them myself and even if most people would think of them as trash, they had sentimental value you couldn't put a price on.

"Pogue!" I yelled, opening the door out into the hall so he could hear me.

Footsteps sounded and Pogue ran up the stairs quickly followed by the other three sons. I shrieked, shutting the door so just my head was in view.

"What's wrong Cameron?" He looked genuinely worried.

I was just embarrassed. It was stupid of me to think he would know the difference between my 'I need help' yell and 'I need assistance' yell. Yes, yes there is a difference. "Nothing, I just wanted to know if you knew where my bag was." My cheeks were flushed red even though no one could see me.

"You mean that backpack that smelt like a piece of crap?" Reid asked.

I rolled my eyes "Yes, _that_ backpack."

"I think Mom might have thrown it out." Pogue said

And a little part of me died. "She what?" I asked desperately.

"I'm sorry Cammie, if it means that much to you we can always just buy-"

"Where's the trash?" I cut him off.

"In the kitchen but you can't-"

I looked around, noticing my old bathrobe; thankful that I would be allowed some modesty I wrapped it around myself. It was _way_ to small on me, falling three inches above my knees and the sleeves looked like they were ¾ instead of full. I stalked by the sons, ignoring Pogue's yell of protest as tried to enter the kitchen. Caleb stood in front of the door, arms out stretched blocking my entrance. "What the heck Caleb, move!" I yelled, breaking out into a coughing fit.

" Cammie, go back up stairs." Pogue coaxed, taking my arm and trying to lead me out of the living room.

"No!" I ripped my arm out of his grip. "Not till I get my backpack back!"

"You can't go into the kitchen right now." Reid tried to explain.

"Why not?"

"The glass is getting replaced; the workers don't want to get interrupted." Tyler input.

"But I don't hear anything."

"Yeah, well, they're quite like that." Reid said with a cocky smile.

Workers my ass, there was something they weren't telling me. Let them have their secrets, I just wanted my stuff back. "But I need my backpack." I said, swaying slightly, my head was spinning.

"I'll get it for her, you take her back upstairs." Caleb told Pogue.

I opened my mouth to protest but before I could Pogue scooped me up in his arms and easily carried me upstairs and plopped me down on my bed. "You don't need to keep carrying me." I know I must have looked pathetic sitting there in a bathrobe, arms crossed and face pouting.

"I know, 'you can walk' you told me before."

I resisted the urge to stick my tongue out at my cousin as Caleb walked in and threw my backpack at me. "Thank-you!" I said, beaming.

"No problem. Interesting decoration choice." He said gesturing to pink walls and stuffed animal piles.

"Shut up." I muttered, shifting through my bag for a change of clothes.

"Were you even into all this girly crap when you were 13?" He asked.

I hesitated, not wanting to seem ungrateful or selfish.

"I didn't think so." He said with a smile before leaving the room.

"I'll let you get changed then. I'll be back in a couple of minutes." Pogue said, following Caleb's example.

It took me all of a minute to change into my pair of boxers and a t-shirt even with my continuous coughing, leaving me plenty of time till Pogue got back.

Not good with waiting, and knowing that if I left the room I'd just be sent right back in, I occupied my time going through the old belongings I had left behind after running away. There wasn't much. A couple of old of old photos and some clothes, but mainly it was just things that I hadn't even like in the first place. The creepy china dolls lining the book shelve for example, I remember watching them stair at me in the dark when I was younger. There was one thing though…I'm not sure if someone had found it. I prayed to god they hadn't, things would be a lot more complicated if they had.

I entered the walk-in-closet, walking to the back I removed the top drawer of the built in wardrobe. Reaching in the back I felt around for the spell book I had hidden in there the day I had run away.

On my thirteenth birthday my mother had shown me a wrapped up present, gesturing at it and telling me that later she had something she needed to tell me. Only she hadn't had the chance, later that day a car accident had killed my father, my brother and her. Days later I had fathered the courage to rip away the wrapping paper, revealing the ancient book underneath.

Over the years, I had often wondered what my mother would have told me if we had been given the opportunity to talk.

The book itself had once belonged to her; like my father, she was supposedly a descendant of witches. My mother's magic, however, must have been real. It was the only explanation I could think of for the appearance of my abilities and my brother being completely normal. Magic carried through the female line…It was weird, thinking of my mother with magical abilities. She had been one of the most normal individuals I had ever encountered.

Opening the spell book I noticed the pages I had dog earned. Spells for invisibility, for healing, for good luck and some for protection. I hadn't tried most of them. Some of them I had though, I had written some down in a small notebook before I left and I had used them periodically throughout myself imposed exile. Many of the others I was too afraid to try, the consequences of using a spell you weren't ready for were dire.

I flipped through the pages, looking at each hand written note made on the side of the pages, presumably by those who had inherited the book through past generations. My mother was one of those names. There was a list of names in the front of the book; underneath her name, my own was written in a nearly illegible script. The thought that I was suppose to have the book did nothing to comfort be, if anything it just made me more curious.

"Cameron?" Pogue's voice called. I panicked, thrusting the book back into the open slot before shoving the draw back in right as Pogue entered. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, I'm just seeing if any of the clothes might still fit me. The stuff I have right now isn't really doing me justice." I said, gesturing to the t-shirt that clearly showed an exposed navel.

"Any luck?" he asked

"Nope." I hadn't actually looked, there wasn't a need too. I had grown way too much in the past two years for anything I use to have to fit.

"We'll have to get you some new stuff then. I thought I told you to stay in bed, come on." He said as he motioned for me to follow him out of the closet.

"Pogue, you don't need to get me anything. I have my own money." I said, sitting back on the bed.

"Cameron." He looked at me, face serious. "You're family. You live with us, you're our responsibility. That means we feed you, clothe you and provide you with a non pink/frilly room."

I looked at him in confusion at the last part. "Mom said you could redecorate the room." He explained "Anyway, my point is, as long as you're with us, we get to pay for all your crap. Even if you don't like it."

"But-"

"What part of 'even if you don't like it' do you not understand?" I smiled reluctantly and Pogue pulled out a thermometer.

_Where the heck did that come from?_

"I see the coughing hasn't stopped," It hadn't, I had been coughing from the moment he left the room from the moment he entered. "Mom told me to take your temperature then tell her so she could see if you needed a doctor's appointment. She also said to tell you that if you_ do_ have a fever not to even think about getting out of bed."

I opened my mouth to protest but all I got was a mouth full of thermometer. "Pogue," I muttered

"No talking. You're supposed to be getting your frekin' temperature taken." I rolled my eyes as Pogue stared at the clock on my wall, keeping track of the amount of time the thermometer had been in my mouth.

"So what were you doing at the park?" I glared at him evilly and he just smiled "Yeah, I know you can't talk. I thought I'd rub it in though."

I had to wait another three minutes, Pogue chatting away about random stuff involving the sons and his girlfriend Kate, before he removed the thermometer and held it up to the light. "Well you're not going anywhere any time soon." He stated.

"What's my temp?"

"A nice and toasty 102 degrees Fahrenheit." He felt my forehead and winced at the heat. "Hope you don't mind attention, because Mom's going to be doting over you for the next couple of days."

"Couldn't you just_ not_ tell her I have a fever?" I asked.

"I could, but I won't."

"Crap." I muttered "Now what am I suppose to do?"

"Be lazy, read a book, watch T.V." He threw the remote at me "NOT get up from bed."

"Are you sure? Because I'm fairly certain exercise is good for your health."

"You can worry about getting in shape once your temperature is normal. Besides, I'm pretty sure you want to be healthy when we go to the lake house."

That got my attention. Every summer growing up my parents would send my brother and me to stay with my aunt and uncle at their lake house. The place was _amazing_, it was literally right on the water and coming from a family of swimmers, it was the ultimate summer hangout. "Really? When are we going?"

"Relax," He said, gesturing with his hands to try and get me to calm down "not for a couple of more weeks. But definitely not till you get over your cold."

"I never get sick; I don't understand why I'd suddenly get a stupid cold."

"Well, that usually happens when you go outside in the cold when it's raining, wearing only a t-shirt."

I rolled my eyes at his logic and hopped under the covers of my bed. It was so weird, knowing that I had an actual bed I could sleep in.

"Yeah well…" I couldn't think of any way to retaliate. "You were out there in just a tank top."

"I was wearing a leather jacket too."

"That you took off and gave to me." I pointed out.

"Well, maybe the world just hates you."

My face fell, I knew he was just kidding, but I couldn't help it. "Sometimes I think that too."

"Cammie, don't be like that. Please tell me what's wrong." He looked concerned at what I had said.

"It's nothing."

"Really? Because from the way you've been acting I can tell it's pretty far from nothing."

I sighed deeply before look him in the eyes. "I just, after what happened with my parents…I don't understand why you would want me around. I'm bad luck. I'm…I'm responsible for it."

He looked surprised, shocked even. "Cameron, what happened to your parents and your brother isn't your fault."

"Yes it is!" I yell, breaking out into a coughing fit.

He waited till I stopped coughing before he spoke "Why is it your fault?"

"It just is."

But he wouldn't let it go "There has to be a reason you think it's your fault."

"Because it _is _my fault!"

"Why? Why is it your fault?"

"Because I knew it was going to happen! Because I had been dreamt about it before it happened! Because I kept getting visions of if it and I didn't stop it. I knew they were going to die and I did nothing!" I screamed, letting it all out. It felt good, getting everything off my chest. I knew he was going to hate me for it, I knew they were all going to hate me for it. Either that or think I was insane. But I couldn't keep it inside anymore. I couldn't lie anymore.

Pogue just stood there staring at me like I was crazy. He didn't know what to say, I certainly wouldn't know what to say if our positions were reversed. Him, a normal teenager, and me, a psychic freak. What was there to say?

"Pogue," Aunt Trixi said, entering my bedroom and walking over to me. "The other sons want you for something."

"Mom I don't think-"

"Just go Pogue." I whisper, his silence hurting me far more than any words ever could.

He nodded, making his way to the door. Before he left he looked back at me, staring at me in surprise and uncertainty. I knew it wasn't over. Aunt Trixi had just interrupted him before he could say or do anything.

"So honey," Aunt Trixi began "what's wrong?"

'_Everything,'_ I couldn't help but think '_everything's wrong.'_


	7. When Options Run Out

**Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own The Covenant

* * *

**

_"The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which to burn." _ ~David Russell

**Pogue POV**

Cameron's words still rang in my ear as I walked down stairs and joined Tyler, Reid and Caleb in the living room. I had told them earlier that they should just go home considering the drama that had transpired within the past 24 hours didn't really concern them; I didn't want them to feel obligated to stay. Caleb had just opened his mouth and declared "No way man" before Tyler and Reid nodded in agreement and had refused to leave.

What was I suppose to tell them now? I mean, I should I just tell them right? Considering it wasn't just my safety on the line anymore, but the entire Covenant's. There was always the chance she was just making it up in some sick sort of attention seeking way. But the look on her face when she had told me, it was full of horror and guilt. Not exactly the normal composure of someone who was just doing something for attention.

"So what's up with her?" Caleb asked when I finally made it to the living room.

"Nothing really, just a stupid cold." I answered

"That's it?" Reid asked, and I knew now wasn't the time to say anything. I couldn't get rid of that sick feeling in my stomach, the one that told me it would be a good idea to spend a couple of days checking up on things before I said anything.

"Yeah, that's it."

* * *

**Cameron POV**

It took me a week and a half for my temperature to return to normal. During that annoyingly long time my aunt smothered me with attention, something I was _not_ accustomed to. I wasn't allowed to leave my room; I guess Aunt Trixi was afraid I'd over exert myself or something. I occupied myself through crappy daytime television and various visits from the sons.

Not Pogue though, he never once checked in on me. After our little 'heart to heart' conversation he had disappeared pretty quickly. Still, my aunt hasn't called in a shrink yet so chances are he hasn't told anyone. But he was avoiding me; he didn't want to see me.

One thing became coherently clear during my time of forced relaxation; me staying probably wasn't the best idea. Pogue's silent was an indication of one thing; he probably thought I was certifiably insane. Just because he hadn't said anything yet, didn't mean he wouldn't. I've had people try to kill me when they found out about the whole 'future seeing' thingy, I seriously doubted Pogue would be one of them. But honestly, you never really know. Better for me to leave know when I had the chance then wait it out and end up in a mental hospital some place.

I had planned it all out; the only thing holding me back was my fever. For the duration of my sickness my aunt would randomly come into my room unannounced, even during the night, to check on me. Now that that was over she had no reason to, which gave me a good opportunity to leave without her discovering right away.

I'd wait till everyone went to bed then grab my already packed backpack and my spell book, then I'd go to the kitchen and cut through the plastic keeping the tracking bracelet on me. As soon as that was done I'd have a half hour tops to disappear, not a large amount of time but enough for me to get some distance between me and Ipswich. I decided to head to Boston, I'd stay at my friend's house for a week or so until my aunt and uncle gave up and realized I was a lost cause. After that I'd buy myself a bus ticket and get out of Mass for good.

The nine hour wait was the tensest thing I think I've ever been through. I spent it walking through the house, giving everyone the pretence that I was glad to finally be over my cold and that nothing out of the ordinary was going to happen. I casually gathered various things I thought I would need; a spare hair brush, a collection of PB&J sandwiches and some money that was discarded in the sofa.

I excused myself early from an awkwardly silent 'family dinner'. Pogue wasn't there; Aunt Trixi said something about him being with the other sons doing homework at the library. Yeah, 'cause everyone decided to do their summer homework sporadically at seven o'clock on a Sunday night. Both my aunt and uncle had work tomorrow, which would mean that they would both be in bed by midnight. Pogue wouldn't be home tonight, so I didn't even concern myself with thinking about how I'd avoid him.

At 12:15 I changed into a comfortable sweatshirt and jeans, knowing that the walk to Boston wasn't going to be fun anyway, let alone in a pair of shorts and a tank top. I waited another ten minutes before putting my backpack on and creeping down to the kitchen. I grabbed a sharp knife from a cabinet drawer and started sawing through the plastic. It took me longer than I would have liked, but eventually it broke.

I grabbed a pad of paper and a pen, scribbling down a quick message before placing it on the kitchen counter next to the now broken bracelet. The alarm system would be simple enough to deal with; I walked over to the little box hanging on the wall and placed a hand on it. I racked my mind for any sort of rhyme that would help me.

"Box that keeps me shielded in, faultier now and let my journey begin. Door open now and set me free, let me discover who I'm meant to be." I whispered into the night.

Granted, the rhyme was incredibly lame, but it didn't need to make perfect sense. Just enough so that I could get what I wanted out of it, and it worked anyway, the alarm disarmed and the door swung open.

My body felt instantly weaker after the use of the magic. Spells I made up myself were the most difficult to control and use. I wasn't sure _why _they needed to rhyme, they just did I guess. Whenever I used them it was uncomfortable, but it was bearable. This particular Use didn't leave me as drained as it could have. It just left me with that annoying tugging sensation that you got whenever you were tiered but refused to go to sleep. Dealing with it wasn't an issue; I shut the door behind me as I made my way down the driveway toward the road that lay beyond.

I was walking for about a half hour before a Honda Civic drove by. I stuck out my thumb and the slowed down, stopping as it passed me.

"Where are you heading?"A voice asked.

"Boston." I answered; letting out a wave of energy to sense weather these people were dangerous. I breathed a sigh of relief when I felt no hint of hostility.

"You're in luck, that's where we're heading. Get in." I opened the back door and buckled my seatbelt as the car took off.

"What are you doing out here this late by yourself?" A woman who I judged to be in her mid twenties asked from the passenger seat. A man who I presumed to be her husband sat in the driver's seat, a look of confusion on his face.

"My bus just got in." I lied, praying these people didn't know that Ipswich didn't actually have a bus station. "There weren't any motel rooms available so I figured I'd get an early start on making my way to Boston."

"You look a little young to be traveling by yourself." The man said, giving me a skeptical look.

"I'm nineteen." My face didn't even faultier as I let the lie out.

The man just nodded before turning his attention back to the road. His wife turned around to face me and began a polite small talkie conversation with me. I complied, ever so thankful that I didn't actually have to walk the whole thirty miles.

When we got to the city I had them drop me off on a random street corner about a mile away from where I actually had to be."Are you sure?" The women asked. I merely nodded and thanked them once more before they drove away.

I wasn't overly thrilled with walking alone in a rather run down part of the city at two in the morning, but I could deal. I concentrated on the environment around me, focusing on the energy in an effort to get a heads up if anyone that passed me was planning on trying something.

When it did happen, I was ready for it. As he passed, a middle age man tried to grab my arm. I didn't give him the chance, I dogged out of the grab, using my foot to kick the legs out underneath the man. He fell to the ground with a 'humph' getting up almost instantly, a knife now in his hand.

"Bitch." He growled "Now you're really going to get it."

I rolled my eyes "Please, what do you want? My wallet?"

He grinned maliciously "Among other things."

Greeeat, a pervert and a thief.

"Now, be a good girl and I won't have to hurt that pretty little face of yours."

"I'm good."I said. He brought up his knife, intending to strike.

I let my mind glimpse the future, I watched as the vision passed over me.

_The man lashed out with the knife, stabbing me once in the stomach, I was defenseless. I grabbed my wound and felt the warm trickle of blood flowing through cut. He just stood there, laughing mythically. _

'_You should have just listen to me.' He said, bringing the knife up once again._

The vision snapped to a close and, knowing what was about to happen, I used the time I had to doge the knife as it lunged toward my stomach. He missed and as he was unbalanced I grabbed his arm and twist it painfully, bringing up a fist and breaking the man's nose with one swift hit. I hit him again, this time in the stomach, he doubled over and I kicked him as hard as I could where it really counted. He fell to the ground, head hitting the concrete hard enough to render him unconscious.

Pathetic, that was the only word I could think of to describe him. On the street corner there was a pay phone, I picked it up and dialed 9-1-1, waiting till the operator to pick up before simply saying, "There's a man here unconscious, he tried to hurt me." Before hanging up.

Honestly, I've had people do much worse to me during my life time, but it pissed me off when they thought they could get away with it. I didn't care if this man didn't actually _do_ anything to me, he tried to, and he was going to pay for it by facing the legal system. Chances were he was probably wanted for something else anyway.

As soon as I hung up I left quickly, not wanting to be around when the cops showed up. I ran the rest of the way to Gale's apartment, knocking on the door loudly. I knew he was going to be up. The guy was a frekin' night owl. "Cammie?" He asked upon opening the door. I nodded and he gestured for me to come in.

I flopped down on the couch and Gale sat down next to me, handing me a water bottle from the mini fridge next to the couch. I eagerly accepted it, chugging it down in three gulps. "What the heck happened to you?" He asked eyes wide.

"Some frekin' loser tried to mug me." I said, throwing the empty bottle towards the trash can. It missed, bouncing off the rim and hitting the floor with a clunk.

"Are you ok?" He asked, taking in my messy hair and red cheeks.

"Yeah, the whole 'seeing the future' thing comes in handy during fights."

He nodded "I've seen how you fight, I know it must be."

I had met Gale and his brother Ben right before I had first run away. He was 19 at the time, Ben had been 15 and I was only 13, but he had taken me under his wing, offering me a place to stay and an introduction on how to deal with the crap someone living on the streets faced. We had instantly become friends, and it didn't take him long to figure out that my 'hunches' that I sometimes got were so much more than that. Unlike most people he hadn't expected me to update him frequently on upcoming wins and losses in sports games or lottery numbers.

After he figured it out he had simply looked at me and said 'cool', before continuing our original conversation like me seeing the future wasn't something abnormal. I had spent a good part of the last three years living on his couch and he had been happy to let me. He was one of my best friends.

"Where the heck have you been? You went out for the day and you didn't come back. I was getting worried." I gave him an apologetic smile.

"I ran into some trouble with the cops." I looked at me in mock shock.

"You? You ran into some trouble with the cops? Noooo." He said sarcastically. I laughed and shook my head.

"I know. But they sent me to live with my aunt and uncle. I left as soon as I got the chance."

"No shit?" He asked as I nodded "Didn't you say your family was loaded though?"

"Well yeah, but money isn't everything."

"Yeah, but it has to be better than this place." He said, gesturing around the warn down messy apartment, indicating the door less cabinets, the peeling orange walls, the puke green rug and the poorly maintained furniture. It wasn't much, but it was much more homely than the mansion my aunt and uncle lived in.

"There's no comparison. This place is a million times better."

"Sure it is Camera." He said using a nickname I hadn't heard in a while. "Why'd you leave?"

"I couldn't stand the lies anymore, I mean, after everything that happened they kept acting like everything was ok."

Gale knew why I left in the first place; he knew pretty much everything about me and my powers. Mainly because he had figured it out on his own, he was an M.I.T drop out, a computer geek, and _much_ smarter than most people would ever realize. "Did it ever occur to you that your family's death might not have been your fault?"

I rolled my eyes, "We're been over this before G."

"Yeah we have," he admitted "but you still refuse to even consider the idea."

"That's because it's a stupid idea." I retaliated.

"Whatever you say Camera." He said shaking his head slightly. "As always you're welcome to stay here for as long as you want." He stood up and stretched "You might want to call Ben though. He's been looking for you and I have no idea where he is."

"He's _your_ brother." I teased "Shouldn't you know where he is?"

"He has his own place." Gale defended "I'm not going to smother the kid."

"He's only 17."

"And you're only 15. I don't stop you from gallivanting all across the country by yourself."

"True." I muttered "I'll call him tomorrow."

"I'm going to bed. Have fun sleeping on the sofa." He said, getting up and walking into the only bedroom in the small apartment.

As I lay there in the darkness of the apartment, my mind went over everything that had happened to me in the past week. I was scared, so scared. I felt childish for it, but I couldn't help it. I had loved seeing everyone again, but being with Gale and Ben, they felt just as much a part of my family as everyone in Ipswich. Before I saw everyone again, I was certain this was where I belonged. But now, now I felt like I had lost a large part of myself and who I was supposed to be when I left Ipswich for the second time.

It's hard, knowing who you are and who you're supposed to be are two entirely different people.

* * *

I woke up the next morning to an obnoxiously loud Gale getting ready for work. "Come on Camera!" He yelled. "Don't sleep the day away! It's already eight!"

"Oh joy!" I said as I got up and went into the bathroom to make myself presentable for the day.

"Look at you!" He said as I came out of the bathroom in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt that hugged my every curve. My brown hair was pulled back into a pony tail and for once I wasn't so self conscious about the way I looked. It was a good day. "You gained weight, good, now you don't look like a frekin' tooth pick. I don't like the clothes though. Teenage guys are gonna get the wrong idea."He was always so protective of me, kind of an older brother, but at the same time not at all. I could never actually imagine him as my older brother. "Just try not to break Ben's heart. The kids got it bad for you."

I rolled my eyes "The only thing that Ben's got for me, is a completely platonic relationship. We're just friends."

"Whatever you say Cammie. Food's in the fridge, help thyself."

"You're so weird…" I couldn't help but say as he left. The only response I got was a slight hand wave.

I grabbed an apple from the kitchen before I left the apartment, not even bothering to lock the door behind me. If someone was going to break in, a lock wouldn't stop them.

I spent the morning trying to track down Ben. I went to his usual spots, none of which he was at, before giving up and heading to a convenient store to pick up a couple of things. I figured if I was staying at Gale's place I might as well stock up his fridge. I grabbed a gallon of milk, some cereal, some cans of soup and eggs before grabbing minutes for the useless cell phone I was carrying around with me.

The walk back to the apartment wasn't difficult. Ascending four flights of stairs and trying to open a door while your hands full of groceries, was. I stood in front of Gale's apartment, glaring at the stupid doorknob as if looking at it long enough would make it open. It didn't. The best part about the situation was that my arms were so wrapped around the bags that I'd risk breaking the eggs if I even tried to put them down.

"Ok," I told the door knob, not caring if it couldn't actually talk back "want to be nice and open the door for me?"

"You do know it can't hear you right?" A voice behind me asked. I jumped slightly and whipped around to come face to face with the boy I had spent the day looking for. Ben looked just as surprised to see me, as I was to see him. My mouth hung open slightly and I didn't know what to say.

"Cameron?" He asked and I nodded. "What are you doing here?"

"It's good to see you too." I snapped. "Can you open the door?"

"Yeah, yeah I got it." He said, taking a bag from me and opening the door. "You're still staying with my brother?"

"Of course, don't I always?" I couldn't help the stupid grin that crossed my face. It was so good to see him.

"I'd like to think it's because you have such a natural connection to me." He said attempting to act all conceited. I knew he wasn't though, he couldn't fool me.

"Yeah." I snorted as we started to put the groceries away "That _must_ be it."

"So what happened exactly?"He looked away and whispered so quietly I almost didn't hear it "I was worried about you."

"I was pulling a job." I admitted, even though I knew it would make him mad.

"A job? Jesus Cameron, you have all these amazing abilities and you use them for petty thefts?" I bit my lip, I hated making him angry.

"Yeah, because you know what being a freak is like?" I snapped.

"Yeah, I do know what it's like to be a freak." He retaliated and I instantly felt ashamed. He did know what it was like. When he was seven he had died briefly during a surgical procedure and since then he had always been able to see the shadows of death following people it was about to claim. He couldn't do anything to help those people though, and I knew it killed him a little on the inside.

I opened my mouth to apologies but he just shook his head "What happened?"

"We got caught. Well, not we specifically. I ran, I made it pretty far too. That was, until I got cornered in an alley." He looked at me like he didn't believe me "I know, I have no idea why I couldn't see what was going to happen. An officer chased me into the alleyway and I thought I was in the clear until a police car pulled up on the other side. After that it was pretty much a game of pickle. I ended up getting grabbed but I put up one hell of a fight. It took three of them to shove me into the back of a car. They took me to the station and I was informed that, though no charges were being pressed, they had to call my parents."

"Ouch." Ben said, winching slightly at the thought of what must have happened next. "Annoying about the powers not working though."

"Yeah," I nodded in agreement "they had already taken my figure prints and ran them through the system. Imagine their surprise when they got a hit on a missing persons report. They called my aunt and uncle after that and I had to wait there until they got there. Anyway, that's where I've been." I shrugged and looked at me sympathetically.

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad." He soothed.

"No, it wasn't. That's the issue." I whined and he just looked at me like I was crazy. "I loved it there, they were so nice, but they were so normal. I felt out of place. I told my cousin what happened, everything, the visions, the car crash... Do you know what he said?" I asked, Ben didn't respond but I hadn't expected him to "He didn't say anything, he just stared at me. I had to get out, didn't I?" I asked again.

Ben crossed the Kitchen and pulled me into a tight hug "Don't worry Camera. I've got you."

A laugh escaped my lips. Regardless of the pain I was feeling, the nickname he had given me when we had first met always made me laugh. I let him hold me for a while, just me and him. It felt so right, like nothing had changed. Eventually I calmed down and we spent the remainder of our alone time just talking about random crap. Nothing and everything at the same time. Around three Gale came home for a late lunch and after spending an adequate amount of time with his older brother, Ben admitted he had somewhere else to be.

"I'll see you later!" I called after him as he left. Gale laughed slightly and just shook his head at my statement. "What?" I asked but the only response I got was laugh.

A knock sounded before he got the chance to respond. "Ben probably forgot something." Gale mumbled as he stood up to get the door.

'_That's odd; I didn't think he brought anything with him'_

But when Gale opened the door it wasn't Ben who stood there, not at all. Instead it was my cousin who looked angry as hell and relieved at the same time to see me sitting in this stranger's kitchen. Even though I knew at that moment that I was royally screwed, the thoughts in my mind had nothing to do with self preservation.

'_How the hell did he find me?'_ I couldn't help but think as Pogue, Tyler and Caleb stare me down.


	8. Revelations and Reassurances

**So here's the next chapter, sorry about the wait. Hope you enjoy it! Also, I added a link to a picture of what Cameron looks like to my profile for anyone who's interested.  
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**Disclaimer: I still don't own the movie...

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_"A little more persistence, a little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure may turn to glorious success."_

**Pogue POV**

As soon as I walked into the house I knew something was wrong. For one thing it was at least ninety out and the air condition wasn't turned on. Weird enough, but I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something else.

I had spent the night at Kate's house, her parents were out of town and this was the first chance we had gotten to spend time together since the sudden appearance of Cameron. Truthfully, I probably should have been at the library doing research like I had told my parents, considering all the information I had found out about Cameron's supposed abilities did nothing but support the idea that she could in fact be psychic.

Apparently her mom's family had been persecuted in Europe due to supposed connections to the supernatural and the occult. They had fled to America in the hopes of starting a new life in the new world free from past oppressions. They had blended into the new society well but every few decades the names of one of their decedents would appear in some sort of news archives for a connection to some sort of freak accident.

Still, it didn't make any sense. If Cameron really did have powers, were they from her mother's side or her father's? I had no idea. She wasn't awake yet, but to be fair it was only around noon, I slept later than that all the time. Whatever, I'd let her sleep. She has enough going on anyway.

I flopped down on the coach as I snatched up the TV remote and hit the power button. Nothing. I hit the button again, still nothing. "What the?" I muttered to myself, I had just changed the batteries. They couldn't be dead already.

Hitting the power button on the TV didn't work either. I even checked on the plug, jostling it slightly before hitting the button again. Just the air conditioning not working wasn't that big of a deal, that thing always cocked out right when we needed it. But the TV too? That didn't seem right. I tried a table lamp, which didn't work either, before crossing the living room and opening the door that lead to the cellar. Something was wrong with the electricity. I found the box of circuits and followed the list of directions on the inside of the door. I flipped the circuit breaker and tried a light switch, still nothing.

Annoyed with the lack of progression I felt inside myself for my power, lashing it out words in an effort to allow the flow of electricity. It flew outward, striking a wall of unfamiliar energy. The barrier was thick but unsteady, all it took was two more hits before it gave way and my power flew outward allowing the electricity to start up again.

"I wonder what that was." I said with a sigh. "At least this place will finally cool off."

A loud trill sounded over head and I left the basement to grab the phone as it rang again.

"Hello?" I asked the receiver.

"Pogue? Oh, you're home!" My mom said in a surprise voice. "I didn't realize… Is Cameron awake? I didn't get a chance to check on her this morning. For some odd reason neither your father's nor my alarm went off this morning and when we finally realized what time it was we were already running late."

"Yeah I came home and the power wasn't working but I fixed it."

"Fixed it or '_fixed it'_?" My mom asked, concern in her voice.

"I got rid of the problem Mom, it'll be fine." I coaxed.

"Pogue! I hate when you use, if you get addicted-"

"That isn't going to happen mom. Don't worry about it."

I heard my mom sigh slightly before a voice yelled in the back ground. "I have to go honey. Please check on your cousin and make sure she's alright. She's been quite lately and I'm afraid…"

"Nothing's going to happen to her mom. I'll make sure nothing happens to her, I'll keep her safe." I promised.

I hung the phone up and ran my fingers through my hair with a sigh. I let my legs carry me upstairs and to the last bedroom on the left hand side of the hallway. Cammie's room. My hand formed a fist and I knocked on the door once, twice, three times. No answer. I tried again. Still nothing.

"Cammie?" I called, pushing the door open slightly in the hope for a response. None came. I waited another thirty seconds before pushing the door open completely and walked into the room. The room looked completely different from the last time I had been in it during the day. The walls were a newly painted light green, Cameron's choice of colors, and the collection of stuffed animals and dolls was gone. Though Cammie didn't know it, but the week she was sick I didn't visited her during the day because I hadn't known what to say to her, but I came in every night while she was asleep just to check on her.

Reid had laughed at me every time, calling me a creeper and saying I was on the verge of stalking. Honestly, I really didn't care. It's not like he understood how hard it was losing her in the first place; he couldn't imagine what it was like getting her back. The first thing I wanted to do when I saw her after two years was lock her in a room and never let her out of my sight again. Yeah, I know it sounded controlling but after she had made a break for it not once, but twice, I had every right to be.

"Cammie, come on wake up." I said, walking over to the bed and pushing on the pile of covers. I expected my hand to hit a hard form, a body, but they didn't. The only thing I felt was more blanket. Panicking slightly I ripped off the covers, desperate to find my cousin. She wasn't there.

'_Maybe she's in the bathroom.'_ I tried to convince myself. "Cammie!" I yelled once more in the bed room. Still no answer. I ran to the bathroom. "Cameron?" I asked, pushing open the unlocked door. She wasn't in there either. "Cameron!" I yelled as I searched through the upstairs. She wasn't there. I ran downstairs, searching through my colossal house in a desperate attempt to locate my missing cousin. "Cameron Elizabeth!" I screamed, she hadn't been in the dining room, the living room, the study, the library or the sitting room. "This isn't funny!" I grabbed my hair, pulling it slightly due to the stress of the situation.

Kitchen, I didn't check the kitchen yet. I ran into the room looking around for any hit of my little cousin. Then I saw it. On the kitchen island sat that stupid tracking bracelet she had protested against so thoroughly almost two weeks ago. Next to it laid a crumpled piece of paper. I wasted no time closing the distance between me and the island, I snatched up the paper and my fears were confirmed.

_Aunt Trixi and Uncle Wayne,_

_Thank-you for everything you've done for me. I don't know what to say, or how to say it, so instead I would just like you to know that I'm sorry for worrying you and that I'm sorry for everything, for the accident, for lying and for taking up your time. But it'll be alright now, I won't inconvenience you anymore. _

_ Cameron_

"Shit!" I swore loudly, grabbing my cell phone from my pocket and dialing Caleb's number. He picked up on the second ring, _thank God._

"Shesgone." The words came out so fast it took me a second to register that I had actually spoke.

"_Slow down Pogue. I can't understand you."_Caleb told me.

"She's gone." I repeated slower this time as I tried to control my panic and fear"I came home…She's not here, she left a note…She's not coming back Caleb…I don't…I'm not sure…" I couldn't even form coherent sentences I was angry at Cameron for leaving.

"Give me twenty and we'll all be there." He said before hanging up his phone.

What seemed like hours later I the front door to my house opened. "Pogue?" Reid called.

"Kitchen." I yelled back and as soon as I spoke Reid, Caleb and Tyler pushed open the swinging door and entered to room.

"She's really gone?" Tyler asked a look of surprise on his face. "Why would she leave?"

I wordlessly handed over the note and watched as it was read one by one by each of the guys read it.

"That's it? That's all she said?" Reid asked. I nodded, rubbing my face with a hand.

"You said you put a tracking spell on her right?" Caleb asked me and I felt like an idiot for not thinking about it earlier.

"Yeah I did." I muttered before walking into my dad's study and pulling out a paper map from one of the drawers.

"What are you going to do?" Reid asked as I unfolded it and took out a thumb tack.

"Just watch." I felt for the power inside of me and concentrated on the string of it that I had connected to Cameron. The tack in my fingers was guided across the page by an invisible force and came to rest on the dot labeled Boston. "There, that's where she is."

"That's kind of vague…"Tyler pointed out and I just shook my head.

"It doesn't matter, it's a start. We're too far away now, but the closer we get the more I'll be able to sense her. The map is just because she's so far away; once we get within the city limits I'll have no issue finding her."I sighed and stood up. "Can you drive?" I asked Tyler.

"Yeah no problem man."

"Then let's go." I wasted no time pushing past them to get to the Hummer. They were right behind me, Caleb climbing in the back to join me as Tyler and Reid took the driver and passenger seat respectively.

"Why would she just leave?" Caleb asked as Tyler pulled out of the drive way. I knew he knew there was more than I was telling them.

I shifted in my seat slightly, not really knowing what to say. "She said she knew it was going to happen." I finally decided on.

They didn't understand.

"She knew what was going to happen?" Tyler asked.

"The accident. She told me she had been dreaming about it for days before it happened, she even told me she was getting visions about it and that it was her fault."

"And you didn't tell us about this why?" Caleb asked.

"Because it sounds crazy." I snapped slightly.

"Dude, you do realize that we have magical powers, right? If Cameron does have dreams about the future-Well, it isn't exactly normal, but we're not going to think either of you are crazy. She's your cousin that makes her our family too." Reid consoled me "Does she actually get dreams about the future?"

"I don't know." I confessed "I mean, I think she does, everything I researched about it supported the idea. But it's not like it's something you can just prove, you know?"

"I still don't get why she'd blame herself for the accident just because she knew it was going to happen. Or why she'd run away not once, but twice because of it." Tyler said as he hit the gas pedal even harder. I could tell Reid, Tyler and Caleb wanted to find her before anything happened just as badly as I did.

"I don't know about the first time…But the second one is kind of my fault." I confessed.

"How is it your fault?" Caleb asked.

"She told me about her visions and I didn't say anything, I just left the room. Then I avoided her for a week. She probably thought I was going to get her admitted to a mental institution or something. I just wanted to get my information straight before talking to her, but that doesn't justify her leaving. God!" I hit the door with a fist "What the hell was she thinking?"

"I don't know man, but don't take it about on the door." Tyler snapped.

"She can't just keep running like this. It's not healthy. You know what the worst thing about this whole situation is?" I asked, not really looking for an answer. "As soon as she sees one of us she's going to make a run for it again. If that happens…The spell only works for so long, if I lose her this time I doubt I'll ever see her again."

"We." Caleb corrected. "If we lose her. We're not going to let that happen, not again."

"So what are we going to do about it?" Reid asked.

"Here's an idea," Tyler began and we spent the remainder of the car ride figuring out how we were going to deal with the situation at hand.

Once we got into the city I instructed Tyler on which way to go. I was following the tugging in my stomach and it led us to a rundown part of the city.

"What the hell is she doing here?" Reid asked as Tyler stopped in front of a rundown apartment building.

"No idea." I confessed as I got out of the car and shut the door behind me. "Alright Reid, you know what to do." I said as Tyler and Caleb followed me into the building and up four flights upstairs. I followed the tugging to a door that was just as run down as the rest of the building.

"You ready?" Tyler asked me, I nodded yes.

"Just don't kill her Pogue, she pulled a really stupid move and I know how you get when you're angry."

"I can handle it Caleb." I snapped as I extended my hand to knock, hitting the door again and again but trying to not sound too eager.

The door opened and I felt a wave of relief wash over my body as I noticed Cameron sitting in a small kitchen table. That was, until I saw the man who had opened the door was at least 21. All previous warnings from Caleb were forgotten and at that moment all I really wanted to do was beat the crap out of who ever had opened the door before grabbing Cameron and, forcibly if necessary, take her home.

But when I turned my attention once again to my cousin she was already running across the living room and making a beeline for the fire escape.

No way in hell was I letting her get away again.

* * *

**Cameron POV**

I watched as Pogue glared at Gale, rage visible and evident on his face. At that moment I knew he was too preoccupied with this strange man to really notice me. I also knew that wouldn't last. For one thing Tyler and Caleb looked like they were about to push their way into the room and drag me out even if it was against my will. For another I knew Gale could only keep them out of the room for so long.

It was because of this I quickly put on my backpack before running through the living room to the window that was connected to the fire escape.

"Who the hell are you?" I heard Gale ask as I shoved my body through the window.

"Move." I heard Caleb snap before a small scuffle sounded. I didn't wait around to hear what happened next, I was too busy running down the fire escape.

Jumping of the final stretch of the metal contraption I landed perfectly on my feet and prepared to take of running. Before I made it anywhere a strong hand snaked out and grabbed my backpack using the hold to whip my body around. Reid waited till I had turned around to face him before grabbing my arm in a tight hold. "Where do you think you're going?" He asked me, his usual easy going complexion replaced with anger and rage.

"What the hell are you doing Reid? Let go of me!" I demanded, trying to get my arm back. It didn't work; he was much stronger than me. I should have seen this coming. I should have known that if Reid wasn't with Tyler, Caleb and Pogue when the door opened that he couldn't have been too far behind. Clearly they had thought this through, having him wait in the alley in case I tried to make a break for it again. I felt like an idiot.

"I don't think so." He said with a small laugh. "What the hell are you thinking? Do you have any idea how scared Pogue was when he realized you were gone?"

I ignored his comment "Let go of me _now_ Reid!" I screamed, the familiar sensation of range and power filling up my chest. I didn't care, I wanted to lash out, I wanted to make him let go of me. I needed to get away; I knew that if Pogue got a hold of me, there was no way I was going to get another chance to run away again.

"Ben!" I screamed, hoping he was still close enough to hear me. "Ben!" I screamed again before Reid clasped a hand over my mouth. I struggled violently against his hold, tears threatening to spill out of my eyes. I was scared, scared of what would happen to me if I didn't get away. Fear was replacing my rage, the power in my chest was changing from a defensive mode to an offensive mode, and I knew that if I lashed out right now I would risk seriously hurting Reid. I didn't want to hurt him, but right now I had no control over myself, let alone my powers.

A strong force pulled me out of Reid's grasp and into a protective embrace. "What's going on Cameron?" Ben asked, stepping in front of me.

"He's my cousin's friend." I whispered desperately trying to control the power that was leaking out of my body. I let out a small scream and grabbed my stomach; it hurt, holding everything in.

"He's not a normal human." Ben warned, staring at Reid like he was about to attack.

"What?" I yelled my body sinking to the ground as another flash of pain consumed me. A scream escaped my lips and Ben bent down to comfort me.

"It's going to be ok Camera." He consoled me "No way in hell I'm going to let him hurt you."

"What do you mean he's not a normal human?" I asked Ben before turning to Reid "What does he mean you're not normal?"

Reid shifted uncomfortably, not sure what to make of Ben's assumption.

"His aura, it's like yours, only more black." He explained, rubbing my shoulders as I screamed again. Ben could see the aura's of different people. People who were normal usually had a yellowish color they let off. Me, I let off a variety of blue and black colors that had fascinated Ben from the moment we had met. If someone had an abnormal color aura, it usually meant one of two things. One, they were dying, but death let off a distinctive color, a gray that slowly consumed a person. Or two, they weren't normal; they had special qualities that separated them from the rest of humanity. Qualities such as magical powers, for example.

"What?" I asked, looking at Reid for an explanation.

"Alright lover boy, hand over the girl before you say anything you'll regret." Reid warned Ben and I lost it. No one, _no one_ was going to hurt Ben and get away with it.

I didn't lash out with my power. Instead I pushed away from Ben and lunged at Reid, knocking him to the ground. The older boy was taken by surprise; I took advantage of the opportunity to punch him in the face. I didn't get a chance to hit him again after that. He was pissed, his eyes flashed black and I was knocked into a wall.

"Cameron!" Ben yelled, running toward me. He didn't make it. Reid's eyes flashed black again and Ben hit the wall opposite me, not to hardly, and he couldn't move. He struggled against the invisible force that held him there. My eyes went wide and I stood up, backing away from Reid as he came toward me. His attack hadn't hurt, it had just surprised me.

"Ben, are you ok?" I asked

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just can't move." He assured me as Reid took another step towed me.

_Thank God_

"Stay away from me." I warned Reid.

"I'm not going to hurt you Cammie." He tried to assure me.

"Yeah, sure. That's why you threw me into a wall!" I snapped back, taking another step away from the still advancing Reid. He didn't look worried though; he looked like he was trying to get me away from him.

I didn't understand why until I backed into a hard surface. I stumbled forward, surprised at the unexpected force. Pogue caught me before I fell to the ground, pulling me into a strong one armed hug. Reid had tricked me, had made me focus on him while my cousin snuck up behind me. I tried to push away from Pogue, it didn't work. He just hugged me tighter.

"Let me go." I pleaded, close to tears.

He just shook his head.

"There you go, you have Cameron again. Now can you let my brother down?" Gale asked Pogue who nodded at Reid to comply.

"What the hell Gale?" I demanded, still trying to push away from a relentless Pogue. "What's going on?"

"I'm sorry Cameron, but I think it's time you face the ghosts of your past." Gale whispered, walking over to his brother to make sure he was ok.

"You think I need to face my ghosts? It's none of your concern!" I screamed managing to escape Pogue's hold long enough to make it across the alley to Gale.

The older man looked slightly concerned for his safety. I knew why too. He knew what I got like when I was angry. "It is my concern Cameron." He simply said, supporting a week Ben. "My brother's madly in love with you and what you're doing to yourself is killing him. He can't help you, but I can. Besides, it's not like I helped them find you. They did that on their own. I just agreed to not stand in their way. I think you might even have more in common with them then you think."

"You…you…you ass hole!" I managed to finally get out. The clump of anger and power escaped my chest and hit Gale who, supporting a look that implied he had been expecting it, hit the wall his brother had just been released from.

My body swayed from the sudden loss of energy, but I didn't let that stop me. I was so angry.

Gale let out a groan of pain as Pogue grabbed me around the waist; preventing me from getting any closer to the man I had just attacked. It didn't matter, I was angry and I was out of control. I felt my eyes flash black as Gale started gasping for breath. I may have been doing it, but I didn't want to, I didn't want to kill him but I couldn't help it.

"Cameron, stop it." Ben yelled, voice strong and commanding. The sudden distraction was all that was needed for the link of energy between Gale and me to break way. He fell to the floor, breathing deeply and just staring at me.

"Gale I'm so-"

"Just go Cameron." He whispered, rubbing his throat.

"What the hell was that?" Pogue asked, looking at me like he had no idea who I was.

He didn't, he never would, so why did he keep trying?

"Just let me go." I pleaded.

"Are you going to make a run for it?" He asked and my silent response was all it took for him to start leading me toward the street.

"It's going to be ok Camera." Ben called after me, trusting his brother's judgment concerning the safety of the strange boys.

"It's going to be ok?" I hissed as Pogue pulled me toward the Hummer. I ripped my hand out of his grasp and I instantly saw Caleb, Reid and Tyler stiffen, ready to pounce if I tried to run. "How the hell is it going to be ok? Just fucking leave me alone Pogue!"

"Watch your language." He demanded, trying to grab my arm. I didn't let him, instead I pushed away, not interested in going anywhere with them.

"Leave, me, _alone._" I repeated, slower this time.

"That's not going to happen Cameron Elizabeth Parry." He said equally as slowly.

"Why the hell not?" I screamed, grabbing my hair in frustration.

"Because we're your family." Caleb said, gesturing to himself and the other sons.

"We care about you." Reid said.

"And it doesn't matter where you run to." Tyler told me.

"Because we'll find you every time." Pogue said, pulling me into a tight hug as the tears in my eyes threatened to spill over. "We love you Cammie, it doesn't matter what happened in the past. The only thing that matters is now."

"No, no, no, no." I whispered and let Pogue drop me onto the back seat of the Hummer. Every filed in, Reid sat to my left, Pogue to my right and I was once again stuck on the hump.

I took off my backpack and threw it into the back. I was still angry, I was still afraid of what was going to happen if they found out. But as Pogue pulled me into a hug I allowed myself to stifle my sobs in his shirt. He rubbed my hair sympathetically, whispering words of comfort into my ear.

Once I stopped crying Pogue whispered something I didn't quite catch to Tyler and, half an hour later, he pulled to the side of the street on a completely deserted road. We had taken the back way home, which meant more driving time but less cars. We hadn't seen anyone else on the road for at least twenty minutes.

"Alright Cammie." Pogue said, looking at me with a serious look on his face. "We need to know what happened."

"Last night I-"

"No," Caleb said, knowing I was just trying to stall "That's not what we meant."

"Please, I can't…" I whispered with a slight shake of my head.

"We have a right to know." Reid said as kindly as he could.

"It's a long story…" I trailed off, knowing that wasn't going to deter them in the slightest.

"That's alright." Tyler said, shutting off the car. "We're not going anywhere. We've got time."

I stared wide eyed at the four boys in the car. They were going to hate me, I just knew it.

"Cameron." Pogue said and I looked up at him "No matter what you say, we're not going to hate you. We're not going to hurt you, and we're most definitely not going to want you to leave." He reassured.

At that moment, trapped in a car in the middle of nowhere with family and non family alike, I couldn't think of a reason not to tell them. If they hated me after my story was done then I could finally go my separate way without any protest.

As I looked to my past for answers, I saw the face of my mother, my father and my brother. Of all the people whose story I was destined to tell, of people whom I had loved dearly and unconditionally. Who, even in death, I was still connected to. Who I had to speak for, because if I didn't, then they would have died for nothing. And for the first time in a long time, I knew what I had to do, even if I truly didn't want to. But it wasn't about me anymore, it was about them. It was about offering closer, it was about explanation.

I cleared my throat, "They started on thirteenth birthday…" I began, knowing at that very moment, that no matter what happened, whether it be good or bad, my life would never be the same after the story was told.


	9. Picture the Past

**Disclaimer: I do not own the movie The Covenant. Anything you recognize does not belong to me.

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_When the door of happiness closes, another opens. But often times we look so long at the closed door that we don't see the one which has been opened for us. _–Unknown**

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"_Cameron Elizabeth, you are in so much trouble!" My dad yelled, griping the steering wheel tighter as he took his frustration out on the speed limit. "What were you thinking? You don't-"_

_My emotions reached their pinnacle; I couldn't hold it in anymore. I expected it to come out in a scream, a swear, or even me just hitting the back of the seat with my hands. But it didn't. Something unfamiliar, something new, something unexpected lashed out of my chest._ _I caught a glimpse of my black eyes in the glass of the windshield right before it splintered and imploded. _

"_Look out!" I screamed voice shaking as my dad swerved into the other lane out of surprise. An oncoming car blared its horn. We swerved again, this time off the road. The headlights illuminated the tree right before we impacted. I felt a protective cocoon of power surround my body right before I was lashed forward suddenly, only to be stopped by the seat belt. Everything, everything hurt. I looked to my left to see my brother, covered in blood; eyes wide open almost as if –_

I woke with a start, panting deeply as I wiped away the beads of sweat that were trickling down my forehead.

"Just a dream." I tried to convince myself "It was just a dream."

But it had been so real, so unnervingly real. I sat there, taking deep breaths in an attempt to gather my composure, to calm myself down.

"It wasn't real." I reminded myself.

I had to make sure, I had to make sure they were alright. Pushing the blankets away, I swung my legs over the side of the bed before kicking on my slippers.

I quickly descended the stairs, looking around the living room for any sign of my family. There wasn't any.

"It's ok," I told myself "They're probably doing something."

Still my nerves were not consoled.

"Eric!" I called out, panic creeping into my voice. "Eric!"

Biting the sleeve of my sweat shirt I waited for a response; A yell, a grunt, a cough…Anything, anything to tell me my big brother was alright.

"Eric?" I felt a tear sliding down my face and quickly wiped it away. Where was he?

"Yeah Cam?" He asked, pushing open the kitchen door to get a better look at me. That's when he noticed I was crying. "What's wrong?"

He crossed the living room in two strides, stopping less than a foot away from me. He looked me up and down, making sure I was physically fine.

"Nothing," I wiped away the last of the tears, instantly calmed at the sight at him. "Nothing, just a nightmare."

"It must have been pretty bad."

"You have no idea."

"Well it's gonna be alright now." He told me with a smile before he stuck out a hand to ruffle my hair affectionately. "You should go upstairs and get dressed then come to the kitchen; I have a surprise for you."

Wasting no time, I ran back up stairs and changed into some decent clothes before making my way into the kitchen.

As soon as I entered the room, a pair of hands snaked themselves around my waist and pulled me into an affectionate hug.

"How's the birthday girl?" My cousin asked me.

I looked at the clock. It was 8:17 on December 2, 2003. I had officially turned thirteen at 2:04 that morning. I was finally a teenager.

"The birthday girl's doin' fine!" I admitted with a laugh as Pogue put me back down.

"You should be," Tyler told me from the kitchen table. "You only turn thirteen once."

"And fourteen, and fifteen, and sixteen…" I trailed off "Anyone else seeing a pattern?"

"Yeah, yeah." Tyler brushed me off with wave of his hand.

"So," I began as I sat down next to Tyler "How are _you_ doing on this fine December morning?"

"I'm doing ok." He admitted.

"Ok?" I gave him a skeptical look "Just ok? It's your birthday too! You should be doing more than fine. You're officially 14; you survived your first year as a teenager!"

"Well if you put it that way…"

"Baby Boy's just angry 'cause he's a year younger than the rest of us." Caleb told me with a smile "Don't let his negative attitude bother you."

"Don't worry, it won't." I assured Caleb with a nod as I accepted a plate of pancakes from my brother.

"Who made them?" I asked apprehensively.

"Mom did." I gave him a skeptical look.

"Ok," He admitted "So she didn't actually _make_ them. She went to a diner and _bought_ them."

"That's more like it." I said, taking a bite and savoring the sweet taste.

"How is it?" Reid asked, obviously amused with how much I was enjoying the pancakes.

"Fan-freakin' tastic." I smiled at him.

"So what are the plans for today?" I asked Eric.

"You know the rules; your birthday, you pick." Caleb answered for my brother.

"Thanks, _Eric._" I rolled my eyes at Caleb. "It's Tyler's birthday too!"

"My choice is a basketball game playing in Boston later. Your mom told us she'd give us ride on her way to work. What do you want to do?" Tyler asked me.

"I just want to hit up a book store and a camera shop later." I admitted with a shrug.

"A camera shop?" Reid asked in confusion.

"She's been saving up for a camera for like a _year_." Eric told the sons.

"Yep! And I finally have enough money!" I said, finishing up my pancakes and getting up to put my plate in the dishwasher.

"Cameron!" My mother's voice carried itself through the kitchen. "Could you come here for a minute?"

"I'll be right back." I told boys before following my mother's voice into the study.

"Yeah mom?" I asked as I entered the room. My mom stood at her desk, shifting through a stack of papers. She was wearing a perfectly tailored suite and as always her hair and make-up were flawless. Like my dad, my mother was all about personal appearances, something my parents and I greatly disagreed on.

"Happy birthday Sweetheart!" She told me, fingering a beautifully wrapped package.

"Thanks mom." I said with a smile. I expected her to say something else, but she didn't. Instead she just stood in front of me, biting her bottom lip apprehensively. "What's wrong?"

She took a deep breath before taking a seat in a chair, patting the one next to her, an indication that she wanted me to sit.

"There's something important we need to discuss." Mom tried to explain to me, she was still fingering the wrapped package as if it contained something incredibly important.

I didn't move.

"What's wrong?" My mind instantly flashed to the terrible dream I had just awoken from. "Is it Dad? Is he alright?"

"You're father's fine Cameron." She tried to reassure me. "It's just…Now that you're thirteen there's some things I need to tell you."

"Ew, Mom, please tell me you're not trying to have the sex talk with me." I sighed slightly, so not looking forward to this conversation.

My mom laughed slightly "No, Cameron, that's not what I want to talk to you about. Please, just take a seat."

But I didn't get the chance to.

"Mom," Eric said, knocking on the door as he opened it slightly. "Sorry to interrupt, but the game's gonna start in a couple of hours and…"

"Sure thing Hun," My mom said with a smile "Are you all ready to go?"

"Yeah, just waiting for Cameron and you." Eric said with a nod.

"Ok, go get in the car; we'll be out in a minute."

Mom turned her attention back to me as Eric left the room. She sighed slightly, still fingering the package.

"Do you have your clothes for dinner tonight?" Mom asked me. It was a birthday tradition; because Tyler and I shared the same birthday, every year the sons, my aunt, my uncle, my brother and my parents would get together for a fancy dinner in Boston.

"Not yet." I admitted with a shrug.

"Go up stairs and grab some clothes for tonight." She handed me the wrapped package "This is for you, but I need you to wait till later to open it. There's something I need to talk to you about first."

"Sure thing Mom." I grabbed it out of her hand, weighing the heavy packaging as I contemplated what it could be. "I'll meet you in the car."

"Make sure you get a skirt!" She called after me as I ran up the stairs.

I _hated_ skirts. I was most defiantly not a skirtsy type of person, but my mom loved seeing me in them.

I threw the wrapped package on my bed before shoving a nice skirt and shirt into my messenger bag.

"What took you so long?" Eric asked as I shut the door of the minivan.

Ignoring his comment I strapped on my seat belt, choosing to spend the car ride listening to the conversation rather than participating in it.

"Make sure you're at the restaurant at six!" My mom warned us, waiting for our nods of acknowledgment before she pulled away from the curb.

I threw the strap of my bag over my shoulder and turned around to face the boys.

"Alright," Caleb said, taking over the situation. "The game starts in an hour, just enough time to hit up a couple of stores."

"Let's get this done then!"Tyler said, all too eager to get to his game.

"Let's check that store first." Pogue muttered, pointing to a store across the street.

"Sure." I nodded, walking over to the side walk with every intention of crossing the street when the traffic cleared up.

"What do you think you're doing?" Eric asked, sticking out his hand. It was an indication, that even at the age of thirteen, I still wasn't responsible enough to cross the street without holding his hand.

"You're kidding, right?" I asked with a laugh.

He wasn't.

Nodding down at his outstretched hand, Eric spoke "You're not crossing any streets until you're holding my freakin' hand."

"I'm thirteen." I reminded him.

"Yeah, you are. But you're still my baby sister."

"Come on guys, hurry up!" Reid yelled from across the street, he and the other sons had already crossed.

"You're so freakin' annoying!"I spat at Eric, grabbing his hand and letting him steer me across the street. He just gave me a satisfied smile.

"It's good to know that you two are still concerned with traffic safety." Pogue said with a slight smile that just succeeded in pissing Eric off.

"She's your family too Pogue!" He yelled "You're supposed to take care of her. What if I'm not around, can I trust you to take care of her?"

All of the sons looked taken aback with my brother's sudden outburst. To be complete honest, I was just as surprised.

"Geeze man," Pogue said, gesturing with his hands for Eric to calm down. "Calm down. It's fine. I always have, and always will, take care of her when you're not around."

"Promise?" Eric demanded and, to be completely honest, he sounded kinda desperate. Why the heck was he asking that? Nothing was going to happen to him.

"Yeah man, I promise." Pogue ensured him with a nod.

"I'm not a child guys," I tried to explain to them "I don't need watching and I can take care of myself."

"We'll be the judge of that one." Caleb told me with a playful smile. I just rolled my eyes.

"Come oooooon!" I coaxed the boys, pulling at Eric's hand as I made my way through the doors of Carlo's Camera Shop.

The store was fairly large, two stories tall with shelves and shelves of electronic equipment lining either side of the store.

I eagerly skipped off in the direction I suspected the cameras would be in.

"Hey!" Eric called after me "Don't do anything stupid, don't talk to any strangers and call us if you need any help."

"Got it!" I replied, reasonably amused that he'd let me go off by myself in a large store, but crossing the street alone was out of the question.

I ran up the stairs, barely making it to the second landing before I ran right into a boy my brother's age. The boxes he was carrying tumbled to the floor and the force of the blow knocked me to the ground.

"I'm so sorry!" I stammered, scurrying to gather up the boxes "I didn't see you there."

"It's fine." He assured me, kneeling down to help me pick them up "Are you ok?"

"Yeah," I flashed him a smile as I handed him over the boxes "I'm fine."

He reached out, intended to take them from my hands. But when our hands brushed against each other I was overwhelmed with a sudden pressing sensation in my chest. My vision clouded over and random pictures filled my mind. Slowly the formed together, creating a sort of film strip, and then it consumed me completely.

"_Hey Camera!" A boy only a few years older than me called from the kitchen of the rundown apartment. _ _"I didn't think you were coming in for another week."_

_He walked over to me, grabbed me up into a hug and spun me around. _

"_It's good to see you too Ben!" He dropped me on the floor and I looked up into his face._

"_Look at you, you got taller."He said with a smile._

"_Yeah," I rolled my eyes. "Among other things."_

"_You're what? Twelve now?" He questioned._

"_Yeah." I nodded mockingly. "I'm fourteen you dork!" I hit him playfully on the arm._

"_How was California?" He asked walking into the kitchen_

"_Laaame without you."I followed him into the room, sitting down at the small table._

"_Well, that's what you get for wanting to see the country." _

"_Well, now that I've succeeded in hitchhiking across the nation I think I'll settle down in Boston for a while."_

"_Yeah! Totally! Gale doesn't care of you crash here, he thinks you're great."_

"_What about you? Are you ok with me being here?"_

"_Hum…" He pretended to think about it for a second. "I think I'll be able to survive."_

"_You jerk!" I laughed._

"_How are your powers? You have any more control?" He looked genuinely concerned for me as he spoke._

"_Yeah, I've got more control over the visions and the spell casting but the stupid telekinesis…"_

Just as suddenly as they had started, the images stopped. I pulled my arm away from the strange boy and looked up to meet his gaze. The thing that freaked me out the most was that the boy looked like he had seen it too.

I stood up slowly; refusing to look away from the boy who I knew had just plagued my supernatural experience.

The boy, Ben, mimicked my movements.

"So what are you?" He asked me, looking down at me with calm eyes.

"What?" I didn't understand what he was asking.

"Witch, soothsayer, medium, shaman…" He trailed off at my confused look.

"I'm Cameron…" I said, stepping back slightly. Something weird was going on and I didn't like it at all.

"I gathered that. I meant why'd you just get a vision about me and you."

"A vision?" I couldn't help but laugh at his stupidity "Like of the future?"

"Yeah." It was his turn to give me a weird look. "How _old_ are you? Did you just turn thirteen?"

"Today's my birthday, how'd you know that?" I took another step back, not comfortable with the boy's insight.

"No wonder why you have no idea what's going on." He muttered before sticking out his hand "I'm Ben."

"I'm not interested." I informed him.

"Of course you're not." He sighed before dropping his hand awkwardly at his side.

"Hey Ben, what's taking you so long?" An older boy rounded a corner, stopping ten feet away to look at both of us curiously. "Who's she?"

"She's no one." I murmured, not comfortable with the situation, not at all, not one bit.

"Cameron?" Eric called from the first floor "You got the stupid camera yet?"

"No, but I'll be down in a minute." I yelled back.

"Looking for a camera?" The much older boy asked.

"Yeah," I nodded, looking at his name tag "Gale…"

"Well, luckily for you I'm here to help." He offered me a small smile as he walked behind a sales counter. "So what are you looking for?"

"A digital camera with the largest megapixel count you have." I told him.

"This one came out a couple of weeks ago," He said, unlocking a cabinet and handing me a box. "Has a high megapixel count, quality zoom and a good brand."

"I'll take it." I said, pulling out my wallet and handing over the required amount.

"Here ya go." He said handing over a plastic bag. "I even included a memory card free of charge to make up for my little brother's abrasive attitude."

"You two are brothers?" I asked, looking in between the two boys.

"All my life," Gale murmured. "Unfortunately."

Well, that didn't make me feel any better. But it most certainly didn't surprise me.

"See you soon, Camera Girl." Ben told me as I walked past him and down the stairs.

"Not likely." I muttered as I continued down to meet my brother and the sons.

"What took you so long?" Reid asked me in an annoyed voice as I hoped down the remaining steps.

"I felt like annoying _you_." I said with a smile.

"Come on! We're gonna miss the game." Tyler told me, play fully grabbing a hold of my arm and dragging me out of the store and down the street.

"You're such a petulant fourteen year old." I huffed.

"It's my birthday; I'm allowed to be petulant." Tyler defended.

"Yeah, well, It's MY birthday too! I'm allowed to be slow." I laughed, shoving my new camera in my messenger bag.

"Yeah, yeah…"Tyler let go of my arm, unable to come up with a comeback as we finally came to a stop in front of the stadium.

"Alright!" Caleb pulled out the tickets and handed them to each of us. "The game starts in like 20 minutes but they're seating now so we might as well go in."

I made to follow the sons into the stadium but before I could go anywhere Eric grabbed my arm and pulled me back to face him.

"What's wrong?" He demanded, looking at me with a concerned expression on his face. "You've been acting strange ever since we left the store. What happened in there?"

"Noting." I insisted, trying to pull my arm out of his grasp. He held my arm tightly, ensuring that I didn't make it anywhere unless he wanted me to.

"Cam, what's goin' on with you? This morning I thought you were acting weird, now I'm sure something's up."

"I just-I had a really weird dream last night." I admitted.

"Like a nightmare?"

"Yeah, we were in a car accident, mom, dad, you and me…It was bad Eric, real bad." I shook my head, trying to get the visual images out of my head.

"Did we all die or something?" He asked, concerned.

"You did, I didn't." My voice caught in my throat "It was horrible, I don't-"

A sob sounded in my chest and Eric pulled me tightly into a hug.

"Don't worry Cam," he coaxed, wiping away my tears. "It's gonna be ok, I'm not going anywhere. I'll always be here for you, I promise."

"I know." I whispered "Sorry, I was just being silly."

"It's fine Cam." He said, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and steering me into the stadium. We surrendered our tickets to the man at the entrance before following the remaining stubs to our seats.

"Heeey, what took you so long?" Pogue asked, glancing between my brother and me and noticing my red eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I lied "Just allergies."

"Sure it is." Pogue muttered, unconvinced.

The majority of the game was uneventful, but half way through my impatient caught up with me.

"Where are you going?" Eric asked as I stood up.

"Bathroom." I responded, waiting for his nod of acknowledgement before I walked up the stairs and sauntered off toward the bathroom.

"Ops, sorry." A teenage girl muttered as she bumped into my shoulder, causing me to stumble slightly.

She continued walking, not even bothering to look back as she continued her way down the hall.

"Weird…" I muttered, grabbing my head as a sudden pain consumed it.

A picture entered my vision and I did my best to shake it out of my line of sight as I entered the bathroom. Walking over to the sink I splashed some water on my face before gripping the edge of the sink in a tight grip.

I looked up to meet my own eyes in the mirror, cold, distant and afraid. Another wave of images flashed before my eyes, but this time they consumed me.

_The teenage girl who had just run into me stood by the side walk, waiting for the traffic to clear before she could cross. She didn't think any cars were coming, not paying attention the girl made to move across the street. The car didn't see her, the girl didn't see the car, and before anyone knew what had happened the two had collided. The girl went flying and landed on the ground, unmoving and unresponsive. _

I wasn't sure why I started running as soon as the stream of pictures stopped. Maybe it was because I was desperate for my thirteenth birthday to hold something special, something that set me apart from everyone else. Something like psychic visions of the future…

Either way, I couldn't help but run through the building, ignoring any protests security guards as I jumped the barrier and barreled through the front doors. Once on the street I looked around desperately, trying to locate the girl.

There she was, one hundred feet away and already stepping onto the street. Catching up to her was a pain, but I managed to do it, pulling her away right before the car zoomed by. We both feel backward on to the sidewalk and I was to relieved she was safe to be freaked out that my weirdo visions were coming true.

"Are you ok?" I panted.

"Yeah." The girl looked at me with a mixture of surprise and appreciation. "You saved my life."

"No problem." I stood up, wiping off the dirt that had accumulated on my clothes.

"But you-" She pointed behind herself "How'd you…?"

"I-I was just walking by and…" I trialed off, having no idea what I should say.

"Well thanks." She said, giving me a nod. "Really thanks."

I gave her a small smile and watched as she turned around and walked away, leaving me to realize exactly what had just happened.

* * *

"What the hell?" Eric demanded, standing over me with his arm out stretched. "Did you just think it was a good idea to take off and not tell me where you were going?"

"I'm sorry," I told him, standing up and looking and the five very angry boys that were glaring at me. "I came out to get some air and realized I dropped my ticket so I couldn't come back in."

"We waited for like twenty minutes before we realized you weren't coming back. Anything could have happened to you! You don't just take off without one of us!" To my surprise, it was Eric who was scolding me this time…It was Pogue.

"I'm sorry." I repeated "It's not like I _meant_ for this to happen."

"I know you didn't Cam," Eric hesitated before running his hand through his hair "But don't you ever disappear on me like that again. You got it?"

I sighed deeply "Yeah, I've got it."

"Good." Eric seemed decently surprise that my answer came so easily and without protest.

"You guys should go back in and finish up the game, I'm not gonna go anywhere." I told them, feeling terrible that I caused them so much worry.

"Nah," Tyler said, shaking his head "The game was getting pretty lame, the other team was kicking butt and taking names."

"Sorry about ruining your birthday game." I muttered.

"It's fine Cammie," He smiled at me "It's your birthday too anyway."

We spent the remaining hours until dinner trailing around Boston, taking in our favorite sights and sounds as the daylight drew to a close.

Around five-thirty we stopped off briefly to change into our dinner clothes before continuing to the restaurant.

"What's up with the skirt Cameron?" Reid asked with a laugh.

"Shut up." I snapped, brushing out the fabric and avoiding everyone's gaze.

"Mom's idea?" Eric asked

"Mom's idea." I nodded

"Figured." He sighed as we continued walking.

Mom, Dad, Aunt Trixi and Uncle Wayne were already there when we got to the restaurant. Tyler's parents were out of town for business so they wouldn't be joining us.

We were greeted by a mass of hugs as soon as my family saw us. My aunt pulled me into a tight hug, telling me how much I'd grown since she had last seen me…Even though it had been less than a week… Aunt Trixi had a soft spot for me. I'm pretty sure it had something to do with the fact that I was the first female to be born in the family for six generations. She had always wanted a daughter; instead she had just gotten Pogue before discovering she couldn't have any more children.

By the time dinner was almost completely over I was on edge, I hated sitting for long periods of time. I was bouncing my legs to the point that my dad was glaring at me, an indication that I needed to stop.

"Cameron." He warned me with a stern voice.

I stopped bouncing my legs. That's when the fingering tapping started.

"Cameron." He grunted, giving me my final warning.

I huffed, needing to stretch my legs.

"I'll be right back." I said, standing up and pushing back my chair. I hadn't been paying attention to what was going on, so technically what was happening next was my fault.

An unsuspecting waiter was passing by at the exact moment I chose to push back my chair. Unfortunately he was carrying a tray of food, and managed to trip and fall backward onto a neighboring table, spewing food and drink everywhere.

My parents, embarrassed, buried their heads in their hands. A manager came over and began to yell at the waiter and I myself was ashamed of what had happened.

"We'll take the check." My mom told a passing employee with a fake smile.

Ten minutes later we were on the curb, waiting for the valleys to pull up the adult's cars.

Reid, who had already been wicked annoying all throughout dinner, was getting on my last nerve.

"So," Reid asked me "Do you like, _enjoy_, screwing up people's plans? 'Cause you're two-for-two right now."

"Reid." Eric warned, rubbing my shoulders in an effort to calm me down.

"What?" He brought up his hands and gestured at me "I don't care if it's her birthday. She's being a total bitch."

And just like that, I punched Reid Garwin in the face.

"Ow!" He grabbed his now bloody nose with his hands "You just broke my nose!"

"That's what you get for being an ass!"

If Reid's complaining hadn't been enough to alert the parents, then my yelling had.

Horrified with the situation, my father ran over to me, dragging me as far away from Reid as he could. Aunt Trixi instantly ran over to Reid, checking to make sure he was alright.

Mom went over to talk to Aunt Trixi, a horrified expression still on her face. By the time our car pulled up my dad was furious.

"Get in the car." He told me through gritted teeth.

I wasted no time complying. Dad didn't usually get angry.

A minute later my parents entered the car, both of them slamming their doors behind them. No one said anything, it was quite, it was scary, and I didn't know what was going to happen.

"Why?" Dad finally demanded when we had been in the car for a good fifteen minutes. "_Why_ would you punch him?"

"I didn't think-"

"That's right!" Dad yelled at me "You didn't think! You can't just go punching people when you're angry Cameron! Do you have any idea how embarrassing the chair incident was in the restaurant? Or how inappropriate you punching Reid was?"

"I'm sorry, I just-" I tried to explain

"No, you listen and you listen well," My dad's voice was filled with anger. Eric grabbed my hand, stroking it comfortably in an effort to alleviate my feelings of anger and guilt.

My dad wasn't giving me a chance to explain myself; there was nothing more degrading than that.

"Cameron Elizabeth, you are in so much trouble!" My dad yelled, griping the steering wheel tighter as he took his frustration out on the speed limit. "What were you thinking? You don't-"

My emotions reached their pinnacle; I couldn't hold it in anymore. I expected it to come out in a scream, a swear, or even me just hitting the back of the seat with my hands. But it didn't. Something unfamiliar, something new, something unexpected lashed out of my chest. I caught a glimpse of my black eyes in the glass of the windshield right before it splintered and imploded.

"Look out!" I screamed voice shaking as my dad swerved into the other lane out of surprise. An oncoming car blared its horn. We swerved again, this time off the road. The headlights illuminated the tree right before we impacted. I felt a protective cocoon of power surround my body right before I was lashed forward suddenly, only to be stopped by the seat belt. Everything, everything hurt. I looked to my left to see my brother, covered in blood; eyes wide open almost as if, almost as if he were dead.

"Eric?" I sobbed, letting go of his hand to check the pulse at the base of his neck. My hands slipped against the blood, I couldn't steady my shaking hand enough to feel a heartbeat. I gave up with the neck, checking his wrist instead.

Nothing. No heartbeat.

"No, no, no, no, no. I'm-I'm just not doing it right. He's not…" I couldn't even bare to say the words out loud, I was too afraid that saying them would mean it was true.

"Mom? Dad?" I asked, not able to hold back my sobs. "Mommy? Daddy?"

Whatever barrier had been protecting me fell away, and a whole new level of pain consumed me. I started screaming, in pain, in desperation, in distress.

"Is everyone ok in there?" A heard a voice called from the road.

"Help!" I managed to croak out.

"We called 9-1-1. Help will be here soon. Don't worry, it'll be alright. Just don't go to sleep."

The words echoed in my ears, but it was too late. Darkness had already consumed my vision as I felt my consciousness slipping away.

* * *

When I awoke next, it was to the steady beeping of a heart monitor. Everything, God _everything_ hurt. I forced my eyes open and saw the painfully bright white of a hospital room.

"Mom?" I called out.

I felt someone grab my hand and was instantly relived…Until I saw it was only my aunt.

"Aunt Trixi?" I questioned, using my arms to push me up. It took more effort than it should have and, looking down, I realized why. My left arm was wrapped in plaster, removing all of my remaining hope that the accident could have just been a horrible dream. "Where's my mom, my dad and my brother?" I pleaded.

She didn't say anything, her eyes just tiered up.

"Where _are_ they?" I asked a little louder this time.

"Cam, I'm sorry. The paramedics…" She trailed off and whipped away a stray tear. "They did everything they could. But they were all pronounced DOA."

Her words echoed in my ears. I knew what DOA meant, but I didn't want it to be true.

"What?" I asked, hoping beyond all hope that I simply didn't understand what was going on.

"I'm sorry Cam." Why was she calling me Cam? Eric was the only one that ever called me that. It was his endearing term for me, the way he marked me as his little sister. No one else called me that unless…Unless something terrible had happened. "But they're dead."

"No." I said sternly, tears running down my face. "No. They're not dead. They can't be dead."

"Cam, I'm so sorry." She tried to rub my face affectionately, I wouldn't let her. I slapped away her hand, not wanting any close contact.

"No." I yelled this time. "No!"

"Cam I-"

"No! You don't get to call me that! Eric only calls me that, no one else!" I was choking on my own tears. "I want him, I want Eric. I want my big brother!"

She tried to hug me, to calm me down. I shoved away. I didn't want her, I wanted my mom, I wanted my dad and I wanted my brother. They couldn't be…. They were always supposed to be there, Eric had promised me he would always be there for me.

"Get away from me!" I yelled, picking up a water pitcher from a side table. I chucked it at the wall, it shatter completely. Maybe now she'd understand that I didn't want her around.

My aunt looked scared, unsure of what she should do. I heard the beeping of the heart monitor pick up its pace. Nurses rushed into the room to see what was going on, Pogue and my uncle trailed behind.

"Leave me alone!" I yelled, thrashing around desperately, trying to get them away from me. "I don't want you to touch me. I want my family!"

"We're going to have to sedate her." A doctor told my aunt. She nodded yes before the doctor pulled out a needle.

"I don't want to go to sleep!" I yelled, pushing away from the doctor as he approached. My aunt looked hysterical. Pogue and my uncle looked like they had no idea what to do. "I want my brother, I want my mom, I want my dad!"

He came closer and I pushed away from the bed. No sleep, sleep meant nightmares, it meant strange dreams. Dreams that came true.

I stood up, ducking under the nurse's arms as they tried to grab me. The door, I was almost at the door. Just a few more feet-

A strong pair of hands grabbed me around the waist and picked me off of the ground.

"NO!" I yelled, kicking out at my captor. I thrashed my arms and legs around desperately. "Let me go, let me go! I want my brother. I don't want to be here, I want to be with them!"

"Shhh." Pogue's stern voice consoled me as he hugged me tighter. My blows did nothing to deter him. "Shhhh Cam, it'll be alright."

A felt a small prick at the base of my arm and it only took seconds for my eye lids to start to droop. "Don't call me Cam." I tried to yell, but my voice was barely louder than a whisper. "Only Eric is allowed to call me that. Only Eric. Only my brother."

"Alright Cammie." Pogue told me as he set me on the hospital bed.

"I don't want to go to sleep." I sobbed as I grabbed his sleeve. "Please don't leave me alone. I can't do it alone. The dreams are too bad, they're too dark, the dreams…"

"I'm not going anywhere Cammie." He whispered in a scared voice. Pogue never got scared, why was he scared now? He looked down at me, rubbing my arm affectionately.

I couldn't fight it anymore. My eyes closed and darkness once again consumed me, but not before I realized one thing.

I had killed them, I had killed my family.

* * *

"Cameron," Aunt Trixi called from the bottom of the stairs "Come on, we're leaving honey!"

I stood in my room, it was the first and last time I had been there since the accident. My aunt and uncle had already sold the house, tomorrow movers would come and put everything into boxes and then put it into storage until I turn eighteen and everything legally became mine.

My room was virtually bare, all my pictures, clothes and stuffed animals had been moved to my aunt and uncle's house already and the only things that remained were my old bed room furniture and a sense of despair.

The past week had been hard, extremely hard, the funeral most of all. People kept telling me that they understood what I was going through, that 'the pain will heal with time'…But I honestly don't see how it could.

I endured the entire afternoon of people telling me how sorry they were for my loss, how terrible the accident was, how they couldn't imagine why such a horrible thing would have happened to such wonderful people.

If only they knew.

The thing that freaked me out the most, far more than anything else, was the fact that not only did my weirdo dream came true, since the incident in the car my anger had succeeded in triggering a sort of 'telekinesis'. Every time I became angry things would begin to shake, even fly across the room. I did my best to keep it a secret, to not alert anyone, but the guilt I was feeling was slowly consuming me whole.

"Cameron!" Aunt Trixi called me again, worry creeping into her voice. I heard her muttering something and a few seconds later a pair of feet started up the stairs.

"Cammie?" Pogue knocked on my door before pushing it open and entering the room. "We're heading out."

"I know." I muttered, biting on my sleeve as I walked over to my bed and picked up the discarded birthday present my mom had given me what felt like a lifetime ago.

"Come on, let's go." He said, steering me out to the car.

The ride home was short, uneventful and awkward. I didn't say anything, Pogue didn't say anything, and my aunt just tried to get us to speak.

Neither of us was in the mood to talk so it wasn't exactly a surprise that when we pulled up to my aunt and uncle's house, Pogue scrambled to his room. I stayed behind, grabbing a small box of my remaining possession as I started up the stairs.

When I reached the top I heard Aunt Trixi mutter my name to Uncle Wayne, stopping me in my tracks.

"What's going on with her?" My aunt was near hysterical "She hasn't been herself lately."

"We've had a terrible loss Beatrice, Cameron most of all. I have a feeling that it's going to be a while before she gets back to her usual self."

"Oh honey." I heard Aunt Trixi walk across the room. "I didn't mean to down play your loss. You lost your brother, I can't imagine…" She was crying again.

"We've all lost family Trixi. Whether we like it or not, our lives will never be the same."

"At least we still have Cameron." Aunt Trixi whispered.

"I still don't understand that. You saw the car, she should be dead. She shouldn't be alive. Why did she live, even though her other family died? Don't get me wrong, I'm so happy she's alright, it's just that…"

"Wayne…" She consoled. "It wasn't her fault; it wasn't like she caused it. If she had, it would be different…"

The way her words rung in the air, they held an air of hatred at just the thought of me causing the accident. I knew they didn't mean to be angry at me; they just kind of were…

I started to panic. My breaths come in ragged breaths. What if they found out? What if they guessed? I'd deserve it, I realized. I didn't deserve a family, I didn't deserve a home or people who loved me.

Maybe I should just leave. That would eliminate any future issues of them possibly finding out about what happened. It was way too much to handle. Crap like this wasn't supposed to exist. Dreams weren't suppose to come true, people shouldn't be able to move things with their mind. Then why could I?

"What are you doing?" I jumped about a foot in the air; I hadn't even heard Pogue come up behind me.

"No-nothing." I told him with a shrug. He gave me a hollow stare. Erica and had been close to all the sons, Pogue in particular. It was hard for Pogue, losing someone who he had grown up with.

Would he hate me if he figured out I killed him?

I would, if I were him. I already hated myself.

"Then what are you doing standing in the hall?" He asked me.

"Nothing."

"Then maybe you should find a better place to stand." He suggested, not too kindly.

A sob sounded in my chest and I pushed past Pogue and into my room, slamming and locking the door shut behind me. I threw myself down onto my bed, stifling my sobs with a pillow. I waited until I had calmed down before sitting up and unwrapping the birthday present.

"A book?" I muttered to myself, examining the ancient volume in my hand. "Mom was apprehensive about giving me a book?"

I flipped the cover open, instantly tensing when I saw a bracket of names and dates tracing all the way back to the 1800s. My name was among them, but that wasn't the thing that freaked me out the most. I traced over the lines, grimacing when I came to the realization that the crimson ink that connected them was actually blood.

"What the hell is this?" I whispered, instantly sickened by my realization.

The pages contained spells, hand written side notes and an explanation I was none too happy to read about.

"Magic?" I laughed slightly and the thought. "There's no such thing as magic."

Still, I couldn't ignore the part of my brain that was urging me to try one of the spells out. It was stupid, it was childish, and it was most certainly impossible… So what harm could it do?

Fingering through the pages I found a spell for invisibility. Sighing deeply, I focused my gaze on a doll sitting on the middle ledge of the bookshelf.

"Let the object of objection become but a dream as I cause the seen to be unseen." I blinked, and it was gone.

I swallowed before rubbing my eyes to make sure I wasn't just seeing things. Getting up, I walked over to the shelf and felt for where the doll had been sitting before it disappeared. Reaching my hand out it brushed against the unmistakable touch of a doll's hair.

Just like that, I knew I was going crazy.

I found the counter spell, the one that should make the stupid doll reappear.

"What is and should be here, let come now and reappear." I chanted

Of course, when the doll did become visible once again, it was far from comforting; as was the sudden wave of exhaustion that consumed me with the release of what I suspected to be magic. I barely had enough energy to walk over to my bed and lay down before my eye lids drooped and I fell asleep.

It was one in the morning when I next awoke; pretty disturbing considering it had been around noon when I had fallen asleep. Thirteen hours, the use of two of those spells had knocked me out for thirteen hours. It made me fearful of how the other spells could possibly affect me.

I read what I had come to realize was a spell book for the next two hours. Which made me come to the conclusion that, even among the supernatural and the occult, I was a freak. Visions of the future, weird spells people could cast…Those weren't exactly uncommon among the magical blood line that ran through my mother's side of the family.

Telekinesis and eyes that turned black… That was never even heard of.

I was panicking, beyond all reason, beyond all control, simply panicking.

It didn't make any sense. Why me? Why _now_? I wasn't special; I wasn't supposed to have things like this happen to me, especially because whatever 'gifts' I had been given caused me to kill my family.

I needed answers; I needed a way out of everything that was happening to me. I was swimming, barely managing to stay afloat as massive waves of despair crashed down around me. I needed a new start, a place where I wouldn't have people continually staring at me in a sad, depressing, partially accusatory way.

And they didn't even know the truth yet, I couldn't imagine what would happen if, or when, they figured it out. Because of this, I knew staying wasn't an option. I needed answers; I needed closure, something or someone that would explain everything to me.

It took me ten minutes to compile some necessary items into a backpack before picking up my mom's spell book and looking it over. I wanted to take it with me, to examine it and understand more about it…But I couldn't, my bag already weighted too much and the extra weight of the book would slow me down.

I hid the book behind the top drawer of the built in wardrobe in the back of my walk in closet. It was hard; I knew I'd probably never see it again. I guess I'd just have to make do with a note book full of spells instead.

I allowed myself to look around the large bed room one more time, trying to give myself a good enough reason to stay. I didn't exactly want to leave, but I had to, I couldn't bear the thought of staying after everything. Coming to the realization that this chapter in my life was now over wasn't exactly easy. Whatever my future held it wasn't supposed to happen here and with that thought, I left the room and never looked back.

* * *

Walking all the way to Boston hadn't been easy or fun, but I had done it.

Carlo's Camera Shop opened its doors at nine o'clock…Which meant that by 8:45 I was already standing out front, waiting for the store to open. When it did, I wasted no time running up stairs to the sale's counter I had been at just over a week ago. So much had changed since then…

"Can I help you?" Gale asked me.

"Yeah," I nodded "I want to talk to your brother."

Gale looked confused for a second before motioning that he'd be back in a minute. Less than thirty seconds later the two boys emerged from the back storage room.

"Hey Camera," Ben smiled as he spoke to me. I could tell that, regardless of what he had said, he hadn't actually been expecting to see me this soon. "What's up?"

"Did you just call me Camera?" I asked, slightly confused with his name choice.

"Yeah, I guess I did…" He shook his head before meeting my eyes. "What do you need?"

"Answer." I told him, my voice firm.

"To what?" He asked, a slightly cocky smile on his face. No one else was around; it was just Gale, Ben and me.

"You know what." I snapped.

"Yeah, I do." He looked me up and down, trying to figure out if I was serious or not. "But you have to realize, when you know about this crap, your old life as you knew is as good as over. Are you willing to give that up?"

"I already have."

"Alright," He nodded in understanding. "Let's get started. What do you want to know about first?"

"Anything and everything you can tell me about magic."

Ben nodded in understanding before motioning for me to follow him into the back storage room so we could talk more privately. He sat at a table, pulling out a chair for me to sit in.

"So what do you know about magic so far?" He asked me as I sat down.

"That it's practiced by creepy people wearing pointed black hats who ride broom sticks?" I asked, knowing that wasn't the answer he wanted.

Instead of getting angry, Ben just let off a small, delicate and calming laugh that left me at ease.

"You sure you want to know?" Ben asked me again.

"I'm sure." I whispered soundly and convincingly enough to make him realize that I was in this until the end.


	10. Fear of The Future

**Alright! Here you guys go, the next chapter. Hope you like it! Also, I'm still looking for someone to possibly edit my chapters before I post them. Thanks!  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the movie...And all that crap...

* * *

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_"When it comes to the future, there are three kinds of people: those who let it happen, those who make it happen, and those who wonder what happened."_ – John M. Richardson, Jr.

Silence rang out in the car. My words left a void so deep in my heart it felt as if I could just curl up into a tiny, safe ball and stay there for the rest of my life. Dramatic, I know, but fitting for the situation.

No one spoke. I doubt they even knew what to say. I had just admitted my hand in the death of my family. I felt like…I wasn't sure. No words could describe my current feeling of sorrow and guilt.

"Pogue." I said when I finally couldn't take the sick feeling in my stomach anymore. "Can you move?"

"What? Why?" He asked in confusion. He gave me a look of uncertainty, as if he was afraid I was gonna make a break for it again. I wasn't going to, not this time.

"Dude." Tyler begged. "Let her out! The car's new and she looks like she's going to hurl."

I barely had time to push past Pogue and stumble part way into the woods before I bent over and emptied the contents of my stomach. Clutching my stomach, my legs folded underneath me and I found myself kneeling on the ground. Another wave consumed me and I heaved as I lost the remains of my lunch and my breakfast.

It was raining softly. I felt the water drizzle against my skin, almost as if the sky was crying for the pain I was feeling.

A hand rubbed my back and I reflexively flinched away from the touch. I wasn't use to people being there to comfort me, especially over something that was entirely my fault.

"Cam," Pogue tried to console me.

"Don't." I warned through clenched teeth, the use of my brother's pet nickname caused me to once again heave.

"Don't what?" He asked, rubbing my back in an attempt to comfort me. "Talk to you? Touch you? Make you realize that you have people who hate to see you like this?"

"Pretend that everything's fine and dandy when we both know it's not." I snapped, standing up and hugging myself. "I killed them." I shook my hair out of my face as a single tear escaped my eye.

"Don't say that Cam." He took another step toward me, I just backed up. "We've all lost control of our powers before; it's something that comes with the territory. You didn't mean to break the glass; you didn't mean to cause the accident." But even he didn't look like he believed what he was saying. "How were you supposed to know your dream would come true?"

"Because I-wait…"I looked him over, and then glanced behind him to look at Caleb, Reid and Tyler. "What powers?"

"We the ability to move things with our mind…Among other things." Caleb explained.

"You're psycho. Crazy. People can't do that that." I stammered, taking another step back.

"You can." Reid pointed out. "And you saw me do it earlier."

"Yeah, but that's different. I was just, just seeing things." I tried to convince myself…But it wasn't working.

"Go ahead and try to tell us that all you want Cammie, but good luck lying to yourself." Pogue told me, his face held no trace of sympathy.

I scoffed slightly and shook my head. "I want you to just, just forget about this. Just forget that you ever found me. Just forget about _me._ Go home; go back to your perfect little lives. I never wanted to be a part of it anyway." I told him, I told all of them. I stood my ground, hands crossed defiantly over my chest.

Pogue looked angry.

'_No,' _ I corrected myself, '_he looked pissed._'

"Well to fuckin' bad." He yelled so forcibly I actually jumped slightly. "It doesn't matter what you want to do anymore. You lost the privilege of deciding what you wanted the day you decided to run away instead of facing you problems head on like you should have. Because," He let off an un-amused laugh mixed with anger and hard love. "Guess what? You _are_ a part of my 'perfect little life 'and I'll be damned if you think you're going to leave it again. I suggest you end your self-pity-party. We lost family that night too Cam. The accident wasn't your fault, and you running off just made us lose another person we all cared about. And that's not going to happen again, ever. So, take your ass, sit it in the car and shut the fuck up because there's no way in hell I'm ever going to forget about you."

I stood there, moth open, body shaking and staring at my older cousin in a mixture of fear and desperation. Pogue _never_ lost it. He was always the calm, level headed one. The one who never yelled, who was always easy going and friendly. The one you could do virtually anything to (well, with the exception of keying his motorcycle) and he wouldn't even flash you a look of anger.

And here he was _yelling_ at me. I was shocked, to say the least. I wasn't the only one either. The other sons looked equally as taken aback by his sudden outburst.

"Now." He said so calmly I was actually a little scared. I was pretty sure I had all of ten seconds to comply before he tackled me and dragged me back to the car himself. He pointed behind himself to the hummer and that's all it took for me to scramble into the car.

"That was a good choice." He told me as he shut the car door behind himself.

An awkward silence filled the car as Tyler started it up and pulled away.

"Sooo…" Reid said in a desperate attempt to lighten the suddenly tense mood. I was still shaking slight. Out of fear, adrenaline, coldness…I had no idea. "How's everyone doin'?"

All it took was one glare from Pogue to silence him for the remainder of the ride and, when we pulled into my Aunt and Uncles house twenty minutes later, the silence had gone from downright awkward to plain old uneasy.

"We'll see you two later. Right Cameron?" Caleb asked with a forceful look as Pogue started to get out of the car.

"Right." I managed to squeak right before a hand grabbed me and pulled me out of the hummer.

"Good." Tyler responded as Pogue grabbed the backpack Reid was offering him.

Pogue nodded before slamming the door shut, earning him a yell of protest from Tyler, before he started towards the house, dragging me behind him.

I barely made it through the doorway before he slammed the door shut behind me, arming up the security system to alert him in case anyone tried to break in, or out, of the house.

Neither my aunt nor uncle was home for work yet, something I was all too grateful for.

He didn't look at me as he grabbed my hand and started leading my upstairs and into my bed room. He gestured for me to take my backpack off and go sit on the bed. He waiting until I obeyed before he began to rub his face and pace back and forth.

"Is this what you want?" He asked, throwing the words at me. The hit me hard, causing me to flinch at his volume and force. "Do you want to be keep running? To never have a real home? To live in guilt and scare the people who love you half to death?"

He looked at me, almost as if he was expecting an answer. But he didn't let me give him one before he started up again. "Because two can play that game. I swear to God," He hesitated for a second before correcting himself. "No, better yet. I swear on The Book of Damnation, if you even _think _of running again I'll find a nice little room to lock you in to make sure you're safe. To make sure you never get the chance."

"What the hell is The Book of Damnation?" I couldn't help but ask. He looked slightly taken aback, like he hadn't been expecting that question.

"It's the book that holds the history of the covenant the rest of the sons and I are in."

"Covenant? As in witches?" I stared at him.

"Yeah, Cameron. We got powers on our thirteenth birthday too. But, unlike you, we didn't keep it a secret so it could bite us in the ass."

"Oh yeah," I snapped, ignoring the various objects that started shaking around the room in my anger. I may have been pretending not to notice, but Pogue wasn't. He looked apprehensive, like he wasn't sure if he should try to calm me down. "You totally know what it's like thinking you're a freak. I'm willing to bet my entire inheritance you always knew you'd get your powers when you turned thirteen. I didn't, it was kinda a massive, unexpected surprise that I DIDN'T WANT."

"And if you had only told us-"

"What?" I asked with a laugh. "You can't tell me you think this is normal. I'm not stupid; it's obvious I wasn't supposed to get any powers."

"Yeah," Pogue admitted. "That's because the magic is suppose to be carried through the males in our family. We've never heard of a girl inheriting the powers. But we've also never heard of anyone getting visions of the future."

"My mom's line carried the ability to cast spells and see the future through the female line."

"What do you mean cast spells?" He asked in confusion, a frown on his face.

I opened my backpack and motioned for him to sit next to me before I handed him the spell book. He took it wordlessly, his frown deepened with each page he flipped.

"This has some pretty dark shit in it Cameron." He whispered. "Half of these spells would kill a normal human if they tried to use them."

"I know." I whispered, hugging my knees to my chest as I leaned against the wall. "I've never once used any of the spells that would be considered dark magic."

"Well that's comforting." He said sarcastically. "What about the other spells? How do you know if you're strong enough to handle them without killing yourself?"

"I try them, and if I don't die then I know I can handle them." I told him honestly.

"Not anymore, you don't." He told me, pulling the book away as I tried to grab it. "Do you have any idea how dangerous your powers can be?"

"Yeah, I have a pretty good idea. They've landed me in a coma more than once. But every time I make a mistake, I learn from it. And every time I use a spell, I gain a little more control."

"I don't like it." He told me with a shake of his head.

"Well to bad. It's my spell book, and it's my life." I tried to grab it from him again, but he stood up and moved out of my reach.

"Not anymore." He told me with a stern gaze.

"It's not my life anymore?" I asked in anger, standing up to try and match his height…It didn't work, he was at least five inches tall than me.

"What? No," He sighed in annoyance. "That's not what I meant and you know it."

"So what did you mean?"

"I meant that until you prove to me that you're responsible enough to handle something of this magnitude," He held the book up in indication. "And that you won't run every time you're left alone, the book's mine."

"You're not my dad; you can't treat me like this!"

"Your right, I'm not your dad. Because I can guarantee your dad wouldn't have put up with the crap that you're so effectively dishing out."

"What crap?" I demanded.

"Gee, I don't know." He said sarcastically. "Maybe the running, maybe the disrespect, maybe the ungrateful attitude, maybe the use of a power you shouldn't even have. Take your pick."

"It's not my fault I have these powers."

"Your right." He told me, nodding in agreement but keeping the stern look on his face. "But it is your fault that you never thought to trust us, or ask us about them. We could have told you why you have them."

"But you _don't _know why." I reminded him.

"Have your eyes ever turned black when you've used?" He asked.

"Only when I lose control of my telekinesis." I told him with a shrug.

"How often does that happen?"

"Only when I get pissed or I'm in danger."

"You need to be careful." He warned me, his face suddenly serious. "The power's addicting and corrosive."

"No it's not." I told Pogue, giving him a questionable look.

"It's not what?"

"Addictive. I've never felt the 'need' to use."

Pogue looked like he didn't know what to say to that one, he probably didn't know what to take of the whole situation. "It's probably different because you're a girl." He finally decided. "Maybe you won't even age like we would if we Used."

"Do you guys really have powers?" I whispered.

"Yeah."

"But why do _I _have them? If it's supposed to be carried through the male line…I'm not a guy."

"That one's got me." He admitted. "The only explanation I can think of is that the magic in the blood from your mother's side awoken it."

"…That theory works. It's the best one we've got so far." I admitted.

"I've got to talk to Caleb, Reid and Tyler about this." Pogue muttered.

"What?" I asked, my voice creeping high as I spoke. "Why would you need to do that?"

"Because they're as much a part of this as I am. They deserve to know the truth too."

"And I deserve my secrets." I reminded him.

He gave me a slightly angry look. "I think you've been keeping enough secrets to last you a life time."

I opened my mouth but didn't know how to respond. His words stung, they left a painful feeling in my chest. "Thanks." I whispered softly. "I hope you feel better now."

"Cam, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

"Yeah you did." I told him. "At least you're being honest with me though. At least you're letting me know that what I've done was incredibly bitchy and selfish."

"And understandable." He added. "Look, Cammie, I know you want to blame yourself for what happened. But it really isn't your fault, it could have happened to anyone."

"Well, no." He corrected. "It could have happened to anyone with strange magical powers that manifest themselves at the age of thirteen."

"Thanks." I said laughing, but before I knew what was happening my laughs turned into sobs.

"Shhh." Pogue comforted, pulling me into a tight hug. "Shhh, it'll be alright."

"But-but," I protested. "It's my fault."

"Hey," He pulled me away from his chest to look at me more affectively. "Don't give me that. I meant what I said; it could have been anyone of us. If we had told you about our powers in the first place, none of this would have happened. Your parents knew. Your brother and you were the only people left in the dark."

"I miss them, sooo much." I admitted as my tears continued.

"We all do." He comforted me. "But just because they're gone, doesn't mean you can't have a normal life. They wouldn't want you to blame yourself for what happen. They'd want you remember them, but to move on with your life."

"I know, but it's hard." I whispered.

"I'm here for you Cammie. And I can think of three other guys who would say the exact same thing if they were here right now." He told me.

I laughed through my tears and wiped my eyes on my arm. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it Shorty." He told me with a small smile.

We heard the door open right before Aunt Trixi called out. "Pogue? Cameron? Can you two help me with the groceries?"

I bit my lip slightly, knowing I was going to have to tell my aunt about what had happened that day.

"You've got to tell her Cam." He told me with a serious look.

"Kids?" She called up again.

"Yeah, we'll be down in a minute Mom." He called out.

"I'll be down in a sec; I've just got to put this away." Pogue told me, holding up the spell book before his disappeared down the hall.

I joined my aunt as she grabbed another load of bags from the car.

"So," She began, giving me a smile. "What did you do today?"

I opened my mouth slightly, not knowing where to start. She was going to be so angry, so disappointed. I hated myself for the pain I knew I was going to cause her. I tried again, this time I found my voice. "Aunt Trixi, I-"

"Hung out with her favorite cousin." Pogue supplied, surprising me as he did so. He grabbed the remainder of the bags from the car and shut the tailgate behind him.

"How nice!" Aunt Trixi said as she made her way into the kitchen.

"What are you doing?" I hissed as soon as he caught up with me. "I thought you told me I had to tell her."

"Yeah, but I didn't think you actually would." He whispered back. "I don't want to see her break down if she finds out. Do you?"

"No." I admitted.

"Good." He stopped in front of me, blocking my path. "The stupid broken bracelet is shoved somewhere in the back of Tyler's hummer so she's not going to find it when she walks into the kitchen. I'm giving you this leeway to show you that I trust you're not going to run off again. I seriously suggest you don't disappoint me, or my mom. You understand?"

"What's going to happen if I run off again?" I couldn't help but ask.

He gave me such a serious look I couldn't help but step back slightly. "Then my mom's going to be the least of your worries." He warned before turning around and walking back into the kitchen, leaving me there with a bag full of groceries and sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I wasn't sure what that meant. But I was sure of one thing; I didn't want to find out.


	11. Shame Without Disgrace

**Disclaimer: No, no I don't own this movie**

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_"Take chances, make mistakes. That's how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave."_ –Mary Tyler Moore

"Come on Cameron! " Reid said, pulling me through the massive double glass doors.

"No!" I yelled, dragging my feet behind me to help stop the pulling. It didn't help, at all. He carried me along like I weighed all of five pounds.

"Please!" I begged hysterically. "Please don't make me do this!"

"It's for your own good." Pogue told me, a serious look on his face.

" 'For my own good' my ass." I fumed through gritted teeth.

"The way you keep going on Cameron," Caleb laughed oh so evilly at me "some people might think you're being tortured. You do realize most teenage girls would _kill_ for an all expense paid shopping trip."

"I am being tortured. In case you guys haven't noticed." I told them as Reid finally let go of my arm. "I'm not like most teenage girls."

"Don't worry," Tyler ensured me "we've noticed."

"Then we have an understanding." I said looking back at the boys.

"Yeah," Pogue agreed "An understanding that you need new clothes."

I huffed slightly. "Noooo I don't."

I continued walking forward, only to run straight into an incredulous looking Reid. "What?" I asked in surprise.

"You're wearing one of Pogue's shirts, _my _jacket and a pair of pants I'm pretty sure didn't even fit you when you were thirteen."

"They did too fit me when I was thirteen!'"I protested with a frown.

"Well, they most definitely don't fit you now." Pogue told me as he steered me into an expensive store where I was fairly certain even the socks were out of my price range. "Your lack of clothing is getting bad Cam. We're not leaving the mall until you have enough clothes to make it through all four seasons."

I sighed deeply "You guys don't need to bring me to a store like this. A Wal-Mart or even a Salvation Army would suffice."

"I'm sure it would." Pogue told me with a smile.

"You're not going to take me to one though, are you?" I asked in annoyance.

"Nope." Caleb told me as he laughed again.

"Now stop complaining and try these on." Reid said, handing me a pair of jeans that were my size. I was a little creped out, considering I never once told him my size.

"Or," He began upon noticing my hesitation. I didn't want to try them on; I had noticed the price tag. The pants were expensive enough to feed a small family for a week. "I could always help you with it."

And suddenly I couldn't try them on fast enough.

"How'd they fit?" Pogue asked when emerged from the fitting room, the already tried on jeans wrapped around my hand sheepishly.

"They…" I wanted to lie, to tell him they hadn't fit like a glove. But I knew then they'd just make me try on more. "Fit fine." I admitted with a sigh.

"Good, grab like seven more pairs." Pogue told me.

"Don't you think that's a little excessive?" I couldn't help but ask.

"No." He told me, grabbing a small stack of jeans when I was taking too long to respond. He grabbed the pair out of my hand before dropping the entire stack on the sales counter.

I felt a sick feeling in my stomach when the total rang up. But Pogue didn't even think twice about it, he just pulled out a black credit card and signed the receipt that was offered.

"Have a nice day!" The overly chipper sales clerk told Pogue as he handed me the bag of pants.

"What else do you need?" Pogue asked me.

"The freedom and the ability to purchase non expensive clothing?" I suggested.

Pogue just shook his head. "Come on, we've got a lot of ground to cover."

I spent the next three hours in and out of changing rooms, but the thing that disturbed me the most was how much fun the boys seemed to be having dressing me up. After most the shopping was done we dropped all the bags off in the back of Tyler's car before going back into the mall. Right now we were taking a break to eat a greasy lunch at the food court before continuing our shopping fest.

I was reaching for my forth burger and third fry when Reid suddenly cleared his throat. Looking up I noticed each of the guys staring at me in a mixture of admiration and disgust. "What?" I asked after I swallowed a massive bite of the burger.

"When's the last time you ate?" Tyler asked me, his eyes wide open.

"Pogue made me eat a light breakfast this morning before we left." I said as I took another large bite.

"Light?" Pogue stammered "Light? You ate five piece of French toast, four pieces of bacon and two eggs."

"Exactly," I finished up my burger and started on my fries "Light."

"How did you feed yourself while you were gone?" Caleb asked, slightly cautious of the answer I was going to give.

"I ate food." I answered as I shoved a handful of fries into my mouth.

"I think he was asking how you got the _money_ to pay for your food." Pogue clarified.

I had known that was what he was asking, but I had also been hoping to avoid this topic of discussion. Sheepishly I looked down at the table and shoved more fries into my mouth in an effort to delay my answer. After three minutes of chewing I couldn't put it off any longer and I swallowed.

Only too realize I didn't know what to say still. Once again I reached for fries but they were pulled away from me by Pogue.

"I'm still hungry…" I told him but he didn't relinquish the fries.

"You can get it back after you answer the question." He told me, pulling out a single fry and consuming it.

I got the message: Tell us what you're hiding if you ever want to see your fries again…

I wonder how much they'd freak…

"It's nothing _really_ bad." I said fingering the straw in my drink "It's just not exactly legal either."

No one spoke for a moment, during which time I realized I'd have to tread carefully if I wanted to get out of this without making anyone to angry.

"What did you do?" Pogue asked in horror. Each of the sons was staring at me like I had grown a second head.

"Oh come on!" I rolled my eyes in annoyance. "It's not like I was dealing many-_any_ drugs. "

Crap, oh crap.

"You what?" Pogue hissed.

"I went through a very rough patch about a year ago and desperately needed some money. It was just prescription drugs."

"I'm pretty sure that's still illegal." Reid informed me.

"Do you know what would have happened if you got caught?" Pogue was infuriated, I didn't exactly blame him. I knew what I had done was stupid. But I was starving, I had no one and I needed food. "More importantly, did you ever do drugs?"

"No." I answered instantly "I never once did any drugs. But if I ever was caught dealing, that would have been the least of my worries."

"Oh yeah!" Pogue snapped back in a low menacing tone. "Tell us Cameron, what were you doing that was worse than drug dealing?"

I rubbed my hand through my hair slightly and growled in frustration. There was only one thing I could think of doing to stop this conversation before I got into anymore trouble.

"This conversation is getting weary and old. Forget that which in the last five minutes you have been told." I chanted. I let the power flow out my body, not a lot, but enough to make it work. A blank expression crossed the sons' faces', and for a second I thought my spell might have actually worked.

"Did you just fuckin' try to use magic on us?" Pogue asked me and I realized instantly that working a spell _probably_ hadn't been the best idea.

"Tried to," I admitted "I'm not really sure why it didn't work…"

"We noticed." Reid snapped "Why would you try to use magic on us?"

"Honestly," I sighed "Because I thought you wouldn't notice and I'd get away with it."

"You didn't." Tyler informed me as I started to rub my hands together.

"Apparently I can't use on you." I whispered. Well, this sucked big time.

"Maybe that's a good thing." Caleb told me "If you're going to start using on us whenever we ask you something you don't like."

"Don't give me that." I snapped back "Pogue's used on me, Reid's used on me. For all I know you've used on me too."

"Yeah, to get you to sleep, or to prevent you from running away again, reasons that were justified." Pogue tried to explain to me.

"So what?" I asked with so much anger that the table actually started shaking "When _you_ use on me it's ok? But when _I_ try to use on you, I'm in the wrong?"

They noticed the shaking and, unlike the time in the kitchen, they knew it was me doing it.

"You need to calm down." Reid tried to persuade me, but he only succeeded in enraging me enough to cause the shaking to shift from slight, to noticeable to anyone walking by.

"Don't tell me what to do." I snapped, causing a plastic cup of water to fly off the table. I yawned at the loss of energy but the shaking didn't stop, if anything it increased.

"Hey," I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned around to reveal Ben standing behind me "What's going on Camera? You ok?"

Ben's calming touch instantly calmed me, I took a deep breath and the shaking instantly stopped. "What are you doing here?" I asked him in surprise.

"Gale was picking up some parts for his laptop. Your aura was going crazy; I saw it all the way from the store…What's going on?" He had noticed the angry glare the sons were giving me.

"Hey Ben, take a seat." Reid suggested, pulling out a seat and gesturing for him to sit in it.

"Actually, I think I'm good…" He trailed off, remembering what happened last time he had gotten in between me and the sons.

Before he could attempt to back away Tyler grabbed his shirt and pulled him into the chair, kicking it into the table before he had the chance to go anywhere.

"We have a question for you Ben." Reid's smile was incredibly menacing.

"We want the truth too." Tyler added, I just buried my head in my hands.

"See, Cameron," Pogue yelled my name as he spoke "Won't tell us what she did as a major source income when she was gone. You wouldn't be stupid enough not to tell us, would you?"

"I don't think this is something I should be telling you." Ben tried to explain

"One of you two better say something, _now_." Caleb informed us.

Ben grabbed my arm and started rubbing it in comfort. He nudged me with his elbow, an indication that it would be alright for me tell them.

"It's ok." He told me.

And like always, I believed him. The thing that always hurt me the most was the fact that Gale was right; Ben did love me and though I did love him, it wasn't in the same way he loved me. Even though Ben knew that, he would always do his best to be there for me. I couldn't help but think he was holding onto the idea that someday I may feel the same way about him. But right now, our relationship was nothing more than a friendship.

"You know how I told you I could see the future?" I asked the sons as I held Ben's hand tighter.

I waited till I got a nod before clearing my throat and continuing "Well, I'm kinda way better at controlling my visions then I am at controlling anything else. So when ever money got tight and there was a major sports game coming up, I'd well…"

"Please tell me you didn't do what I think you did." Pogue begged.

I smiled a small apologetic smile "I'd tell other people the results in an exchange for a 20% profit from their wining bets."

"Didn't anyone ever get suspicious?" Caleb.

"Occasionally, but if they ever did I'd make sure they couldn't remember why they were suspicious in the first place."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Tyler asked.

"It means that no one could remember me, let alone their previous curiosity at my unbelievable guessing abilities." I sighed

"And her magic worked, most of the time." Ben looked at the sons carefully "Whenever it didn't Gale and I would protect her. What about you guys? Do you honestly think you're able to keep her safe?"

"Ben…" I tried to calm down my suddenly angry friend.

"What?" Ben asked "Gale and I took care of you the past two years; these guys couldn't even _find_ you. Like they could do a better job helping you than we could."

"Yeah I bet we could." Reid smugly, leaning forward to glair angrily at Ben.

"Oh yeah tough guy?" Ben let go of my hand to lean forward and meet Reid's gaze.

"Both of you stop it." I warned; stick out my hands to push them apart. "I can take care of myself."

A moment's hesitation more passed before both teenagers leaned back against their chairs.

"Sorry Camera." Ben told me and before he could say anything else his cell phone rang. "I'll be right back."

Ben put an affectionate hand on my shoulder before walking away to answer his phone. Looking up I could have sworn I saw a brief look of jealously in Reid's eyes as Ben touched me.

"What?" I asked as Pogue looked at me.

"What do you think? Illegal gambling operation?" He snapped at me "Why the hell didn't you just come home if things were that bad?"

"Because money isn't what makes the world go round. If I got to do everything over gain, starting from me running away to when the cops busted me, I wouldn't change a thing." I told my cousin.

"So you'd leave us again?" He looked angry

"That's not what I meant and you know it. Everything I went through in the past two years has made me into the person I am now." I explained "Yeah, not being around you guys sucked ass but it also taught me how to take care of myself and how to control my powers."

"We could have taught you how to control your powers." Pogue pointed out desperately. "We could have been there when you needed us."

"I'm sorry I worried you for all that time. It was selfish and immature of me. But you have to understand that I learn from experience, not example." I whispered.

"But all the stealing? All the drug dealing and gamboling? Not being able to control your magic?" He seemed upset but was trying to hide it. The only reason I noticed was because of how much our relationship had started to heal over the past couple of weeks.

"Led me back home to you guys when I needed it most. That's the thing about my magic, it may not always do what I want it to, but it always does what I need it to." I smiled at my sad looking cousin as Ben came back over to the table.

"Hey that was Gale," Ben told me.

"Big surprise there." He raised his eyebrows at me.

"Yeah I know." He muttered "Well, I've got to go. I'd tell you to have fun shopping, but the last time I took you to The Salvation Army because you were literally out of clothes, you almost killed me."

Pogue gave me a satisfied look, Tyler smiled, Caleb laughed and Reid just mumbled "I knew you'd bitch about shopping no matter where we took you."

"Anyway, " Ben continued "I'll see you later Camera. Call me if you need me."

"Actually," I said before he could walk off "Can I go with you to see him before you guys leave? I kinda want to apologize."

"Yeah, sure." Ben sighed

"You're not going anywhere without us." Pogue warned me

"Come on Pogue," I whinnied slightly "I'm not going anywhere but to see Gale, then I'll come back. Besides, you can't tell me there isn't at least one store you want to visit for yourself today."

Pogue hesitated for a minute before Caleb decided to respond for him "Go ahead, but don't take long."

I nodded yes before running to catch up to Ben.

"Cameron!" Pogue yelled up behind me. I turned around to look at him and noticed how seriously he was looking at me "Remember what we talked about last week, because if I have to come looking for you…"

"I've got it." I promised him with a nod as Ben and I continued our walk to the computer store.

"So you're fitting in quite well aren't you?" He asked me, wrapping an arm around my shoulder.

"Yeah, it's hard to believe it's only been a week since I ran away for the second time." I admitted sheepishly.

"I think it's hard to believe it's been a like three weeks since you disappeared and Jason hasn't hunted you down yet." His words left a sick feeling in my stomach.

"Urgh," I shivered at just the thought of Jason "Don't go there."

I'd be lying if I told you I hadn't thought about Jason Bradley in the three weeks since I moved home. Jason had been my biggest client in my little gamboling operation. He was also abusive, cruel, controlling and, for some reason behind my comprehension, immune to my magic. Eight years my senior, Jason had suspected there was something more to my guessing skills from the beginning. As time went on he had only become more suspicious, until he had discovered the truth. When that happened he had kidnapped me, refusing to let me do anything without his say so for fear of losing his biggest source of income.

Once again Ben and Gale had saved me ass, getting me out of his slimy grasp before anything bad had happened to me. Unfortunately Jason had gone on the rampage, doing everything in his power to try and find me again. Which, considering he was wealthy and manipulative, was a lot. I had managed to stay under his radar and had been whisked away from Boston by my aunt and uncle before he could find me again.

"You should tell them." Ben told me and, judging by the look on his face, it pained him to say it. "It'll help them take care of you and it'll help _you_ feel safe at night."

"They already hate me enough. I don't need to add insult to injury." Ben stopped so abruptly I managed to run into him.

"They feel a lot a thing about you Cameron. Love, friendship, sympathy, understanding…But none of them are hatred." He looked down at me "So don't say that. Got it?"

"Yeah. Sorry, I was feeling sorry for myself."

He shook his head at me "It's fine-crap…Speak of the devil."

Instantaneously he hugged me into his chest and looked down affectionate at me before speaking to me so softly I could barely hear him. "Our favorite little friend's cronies are lingering around the mall. Frekin' creepers. Just look up at me, smile at me like you actually don't hate me." I complied "Yeah that's it. Now we're just going to stand here until they leave, then we're going to talk to your cousin and explain everything to them."

As he spoke I had become increasingly tenser. Jason was _not_ a nice person and I had successfully pissed him off. Intentionally, on more than one occasion I might add. For instants, the last game scores he had demanded from me I had lied to him about-badly, I might add- causing him to lose thousands of dollars. I had claimed that he needed to lose occasionally in order to keep a low profile, but that hadn't stopped him from giving me a broken arm.

"Ok, they're gone." He told me before pushing me away slightly so we could start walking again. But as soon as he let go of me, we were swarmed from all sides.

"Well, what do we have here?" Wade, Jason's head follower asked Ben and me.

"Nothing, we were just leaving." I said, trying to step away. Wade stepped in front of me and opened his jacket to reveal the gun he had underneath it.

"No you weren't." He smiled evilly at me "You were a _pain _in the ass to find Cameron. So guess what you're going to do now. You're going to be a good little girl and follow us and not make a scene."

"I don't think so." I snapped back. "I'm not stupid and I _know_ you're not going to shoot me unless you want to unleash the wrath of your boss."

"You're right." Wade admitted fingering his gun "I might not shoot you, but your boyfriend here isn't as lucky. One false move and he gets it."

And just like that I was listening to what he had to say to me. "OK, I'll do what you want. Just don't hurt him."

"No, Cameron." Ben protested but one look from me and he was silenced.

"Don't make me do anything you'll regret." I warned him "Please don't say anything."

I had used magic on Ben before, but only in situations that I absolutely had to. Ben wasn't stupid, he knew if I thought I had to use magic against him to keep him safe, I would.

Ben wasn't sure what to say, so he didn't speak as Wade directed the two of us out a door and into a side alley.

"What now?" Ben asked, standing in front of me defensively.

"I don't need you anymore." Wade hit Ben in the head with the butt of his gun, instantly rendering him unconscious.

"Ben!" I screamed running forward "Ben!"

Wade grabbed me around the waist before I could reach me friend. He grasped a hand over my mouth before dragging me towards an ominous white van that had just pulled up.

"You actually got her?" I heard the driver ask right before I was shoved through a side door. Hands grabbed me and I was gagged and blind folded.

One of the things that sucked most about my magic was the fact that it required verbal commands. Take that away, and I could use as much magic as a street magician. The only thing I could successfully use at that moment was my capability to see the future. Which, let's be completely honest, wasn't exactly useful at this time.

I tried to struggle, to kick away and get my hands back so that I could remove the gag. But strong hands grabbed me and I was instantly tied up. Still I refused to be restricted, I still fought against whatever or whoever I could as I kicked and thrashed out.

I hit something; I heard a satisfactory crack and felt the warm trickle of blood as it dripped onto my skin.

"My nose!" I heard someone scream "She fuckin' broke my nose! I'm gunna kill her."

"No!" Wade warned "You touch her and I'll kill you."

He grabbed me and tried to pin me down, but still I didn't stop fighting.

"Then what the fuck am I suppose to do?" The man asked desperately as I kicked him over and over again.

Wade sighed in annoyance "Do I have to do everything myself?" He asked as I heard the rustle of fabric and felt something hard hit my head right before darkness consumed me completely.


	12. For You I Will

**Ok! So I went back and edited as much material that I could. What you first need to know is that I changed the names of Pogue's parents (Cameron's aunt and uncle) so that they're now Beatirice (nickname Trixi) and Wayne. Those are the actual names; I found them on the IMDB website and thought I should change them. Also, I went back and COMPLETELY redid chapter 9...You need to go back and read it, it's really important that you do. Here's the next chapter; enjoy!**

Disclaimer: I do not own the movie The Covenant

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_Betrayal is the only truth that sticks._

When I finally awoke, I realized I was gagged and completely immobilized. I was sitting in a chair, my hands so tightly bound together I couldn't even move them. The room I was in was dark; the only source of light came from a dull light bulb. The room was virtually bare except for a few shelves that lined the walls.

My head was pounding, my throat was dry and my stomach was letting off an annoying loud growl. Food, I _needed_ food. Pogue hadn't let me finish my lunch; I'd only consumed only four of the nine burgers I had purchased, most definitely not enough to keep me going. And, considering Jason was an evil, sadistic monster, the chances of me getting food any time soon were incredibly, incredibly small.

My metabolism was…Special, to say the least. It was fast, incredibly fast. Like, I could literally eat a cow and still have room for desert. The reason for this could be attributed to my magic, the more I used it, the more I needed to eat. It didn't matter if it were visions, telekinesis or even spell work. If I Used, I needed food, and a lot of it.

Before moving back in with my aunt and uncle, this had been a _massively_ huge issue. Money was tight, and food was expensive. This had been the main reason I had turned to gamboling, it gave me enough money to feed myself and enough left over cash to pay for a couple of nights in a motel room.

I needed out of this room, and I needed out now. Small confined spaces and me? Yeah, we didn't get along to well.

I struggled against my ropes, ignoring the pain as my skin rubbed away. I fought, as hard as I could for as long as I could, before realizing it was hopeless. The ropes weren't about to give way, and I wasn't about to get out here that easily.

I focused, long and hard on the untamed power residing in my chest. It was just out of my grasp.

I concentrated harder this time, just barely touching it before it, once again, slipped through my fingers.

"Come on!"I thought to myself "Come on, come on, come on!"

I lunged at the power contained within myself, embracing it completely before forcing it out of my body. I had meant to release a small amount, just enough to release me from my bonds. More power then I could control escaped and I knew I was in trouble.

A shelf exploded, its contents flew in every direction as a wave of exhaustion completely consumed me. It took all of thirty seconds before I had once again passed out.

* * *

Hours later I awoke to someone slapping my cheek, hard.

"Wake up." Wade told me, slapping me harder for each second I didn't respond.

I looked up at him, unable to response due to the cloth in my mouth. My look said everything, how angry and pissed off I was. The second I was given the chance, I was going to beat the living shit out of him. He knew it too, but unlike me, he didn't think I was capable of causing him harm.

"Let's go." Wade cut away the ropes that attached me to the seat before pulling out of the room and through the building. I was in an abandoned warehouse of some sort. Desolate, dark and dismal…

I wanted to say something, to yell at Wade for being suck a jack ass…But the stupid gage was still in place. That and I was as incapacitated as ever due to the handcuffs Wade had decided I needed to wear…

Not that that stopped me from at least _trying_ to get out of the iron tide hold Wade had around my arm. It worked too…Kinda. I managed to trip him, causing him to fall to the floor. He let go of me briefly, well, long enough for me to make it ten feet.

After that I was picked up by my hair and thrown to the ground.

"Bitch." He said, slapping me across the face.

'_I'm not a bitch'_ I wanted to respond, but I couldn't.

He raised his hand again, intending to slap me.

"Wade." Jason warned his voice stern and commanding.

I instantly backed away, wanting to create as much distance between the man and me as was possible. I hated him, but unfortunately for me, he didn't hate me. Maybe things would have been easier if he did.

"Is that any way to treat our guest?" Jason asked, shaking his head slightly at Wade. "Now, if you'll remove that…thing from her mouth, I would very much like to talk to her."

"But Sir," Wade protested "What about her…skills."

"I ensure you; they aren't an issue at the current moment." Jason smiled, his white teeth flashing dangerously.

He walked over to me; ignoring the fact that the suit was wearing at least a thousand dollar suit, he crouched down beside me on the dirty factory floor and pulled out a knife.

I instantly backed up, desperate to create as much distance between Jason and me as was possible. My efforts were halted when I hit something solid.

"There's no need to be afraid, Cameron." He tried to ensure me, brandishing the knife in front of me. "Now please, stop being difficult."

I tried to push away again but Wade grabbed my hair, using it to hold me in place.

"I told you to stop being difficult." Jason warned, bringing up a free finger and using it to whip away a trail of blood that was tricking down my face. "You don't want me to have to hurt you, do you?"

No sooner had he cut away my gag then I collected up what little saliva I could and spat on Jason's face.

"Now," Jason told me, taking a deep breath and whipping away the spit on his cheek. "That wasn't very nice."

"Bite me." I snapped.

He slapped me, just hard enough to draw blood. "Cameron, you know better than to speak to me like that."

I shut up, not wanting anything else to happen to me.

"There, now isn't that better?" He asked me, looking down at me with cold, emotionless eyes.

I didn't answer, knowing my voice was in danger of cracking, of betraying my emotions. But Jason wouldn't take it; he was controlling, manipulative and determined to get his way.

I tried to look away, tried to hide my feelings; Jason slapped me again and I closed my eyes, doing my best to hold in the stream of tears that was escaping them. I would cry, I would let the tears fall, but I wouldn't make a sound, I wouldn't complain and I would do my best to be strong.

There was no one to save me this time; I'd just have to save myself.

"I asked," Jason repeated in a much softer voice, lifting up my chin so he could look at my closed eyes. He waited until I had opened them before continuing "isn't that better?"

"Did you know that hippos have killed over 400 people in Africa? That's more than any other wild animal." I responded dryly, satisfied when a look of confusion flashed on Jason's face but it didn't last; as soon as it had appeared it was instantly replaced with one of annoyance.

"You don't say…" He sighed before standing up, not bothering to take off the handcuffs that bound my hands behind my back. "Look, Cameron. You're here for one reason, and one reason only; you're going to help me win back the money you lost me."

"Do I get to leave after that?" I asked knowing what the answer would be.

"Of course you do." He told me, but we both knew it was a lie. He wasn't going to let me go anyway, ever.

"Now, I have some…information I would like you to enlighten me with." Jason continued, giving me a calm look. I wasn't stupid; I knew he wasn't actually calm, he was just acting that way in the hopes that it would produce an easy coming answer from me.

I wasn't going to tell him though; I was done being his play thing.

"No." I simply stated.

He sighed, almost as if he were sorry about what he was going to do next. But I seriously doubted that.

"Tell me, Cameron."

"No." I repeated through gritted teeth.

"I said," he said in a normal voice before he started to yell "tell me Cameron."

"And I said no." I responded, hating him, simply hating him.

"Fine." Jason's face was hard set and his voice was cold "But you're going to give in eventually. I'm sure a couple of days of no food or water will help change your mind. But don't worry," He leaned down and whispered into my ear "I always get what I want."

He stood up, brushing he dust off his suit before turning to look at Wade "Take her away."

"Ben _will_ find me!" I told Jason "And when he does, you're going to be sorry."

Jason just laughed "I'm sorry to disappoint you Cameron, but you're not going anywhere. Ben's never going to find you."

"He will." I insisted, knowing that Ben would always find me, no matter where I went, no matter what I did, Ben would find me. Jason didn't know about Pogue, he didn't know about the powers my cousin and his friends had; good, I wanted to keep it that way. It was my turn to keep _him_ safe.

"See, that's where you're wrong." He told me, an evil glint in his eyes. "Ben isn't going to be an issue anymore."

"What did you do to him?" I demanded, forcing myself to onto my feet. Not an easy task, considering I still didn't have the use of my hands.

"Nothing yet." Jason smiled "But rest assured, when he does come he's no longer going to be an issue."

"What's that suppose to mean?" I asked cautiously.

Jason fingered his knife menacingly "I think you know what that means."

"You even _think_ of touching him and I swear-"

"You'll what?" Jason asked before sighing deeply "See, Cameron. What you don't seem to understand is that you're mine now. Everything you say, everything you do, you do because I say you can."

"You can't control me anymore. I'm not your puppet!" I hissed.

He shook his head and scoffed at me "That's the thing Cameron, you _are_ my puppet. You're mine now and you're never going to get away from me again."

"Like Hell I won't!" I yelled, racking my brain for an incantation that would help me in this situation. I opened my mouth, intending on using what little energy I had to cause some damage.

But Jason knew me, he knew what I was going to do and, before I could do anything, he picked the disguarded piece of cloth and shoved it into my mouth. "Put her back into the room; I'm sure a couple more days of no food and water will make her more cooperative."

Almost on cue my stomach growled loudly, confirming Jason's suspicions that I was hungry, very hungry.

Wade grabbed me, dragging me back through the warehouse and to the room I had been locked in before. It was tiny, almost as small as a closet, but even more cramped.

I yell as loudly as I could, fighting as hard as I could as Wade pushed me into the room. I didn't want to get stuck in small room again; I didn't want to be locked in a closet. Wade knew I was claustrophobic; he was taking too much fun in my pain as he shoved me into the room, unlatching my handcuffs just long enough secure my hands behind the chair.

"See you later, Bitch." Wade told me before he shut the door behind him, not even bothering to turn the light back on. The door shut with a slam, cutting off the only source of light. And there I was left, completely alone in the darkness with only myself as company.

I was incapacitated, alone, and the only way out of the room was through the door Wade had just locked. Jason was convinced he had done completely eliminated the chances of me ever escaping.

I would wait, I would bide my time, but I would get out of here.

* * *

The average human could go three weeks without food; I could only go three days. Jason's threat of no food or water held true until halfway through the third day; but even then the food had been in short supply. Two pieces of bread, all I had been given was two pieces of bread.

I was unsure of how much time had passed it may have just been days, or even possibly weeks, but I waited until the time was right.

Because I couldn't see my hands, using a spell to unlock the handcuffs wasn't exactly a good idea. My empty stomach and incredibly dry throat were making it hard for me think of anything else; losing my concentration when casting could lead to consequences I wasn't willing to risk. So, to get out first I'd need to somehow make eye contact with the cuffs.

The chair I was shackled to made of a strong wood, but after much pulling and prodding, not to mention excessive hand lacerations, I managed to break away the piece of wood that was preventing my hands from moving. After that it was all a matter of my flexibility, I stepped over my hands before bringing them up to my mouth and removing the gag.

Now the only thing holding me back was my lack of food. I concentrated on the handcuff, using my spell casting abilities to unlock them before doing the same to the door.

I felt my body instantly drain of energy, my legs swayed underneath me and I knew I couldn't use any more magic; not if I wanted to make it anywhere. I was in trouble even before I Used, now using more magic then was needed would only get me killed.

Creeping through the building, I made sure to remain undetected. I had no intention of ever being stuck in a closet again, I had no intention of ever succumbing to will of Jason, and I had no intention of compromising my moral values. I didn't need to cheat anymore; I didn't need to do anything illegal to survive. I had a family who could take care of me. Who loved me and wanted what was best for me, who wouldn't let me starve to death because they wanted something from me.

I steady stream of voices halted my escape attempt. Wade's low, gruff voices echoed through the fast halls of the warehouse. I heard Jason respond and found myself moving closer, intending to hear what they were saying. Which was rather stupid of me, I should just leave…But I had to know what they were saying.

"The plane leaves in two hours," Jason responded to whatever Wade had said "I have every intention of being on it. Once we're out of the country they'll be no need to worry about any friends coming to Cameron's rescue."

Wait? What? They were planning on making me leave the country? No way was I going to let that happen.

"What about that Ben kid? He always seems to show up whenever it's incontinent." Wade sighed.

"You have a gun." Jason snapped "Use it. If he shows up, kill him before he gets the chance to do anything."

A sick feeling sprouted in my stomach. They wanted to kill Ben? No, they couldn't. I wouldn't let them. Ben was my best friend, Gale and he had always been there for me. I couldn't let them hurt Ben. But at the same time, I knew Ben would follow me to the ends of the earth and back. I had to get out of there before he came looking for me…Because if he did and he got hurt, I wouldn't be able to live with myself.

I made my way swiftly over to an exit door and pressed the metal bar extended across the door and pushed it open. But it didn't move, it was locked. Ok, no biggie, I'd just try another door.

I knew I had a limited amount of time. There hadn't been a strict schedule in regards to someone checking on me, but at least once a day someone would look in on me. No one had checked on me yet today; it was going to happen eventually and I had to out of here before someone realized I was missing.

I ran, quietly but swiftly to the next door. Not that it mattered, that door was locked too. Footsteps sounded and I found myself involuntarily panicking.

Each second that passed the steps became close and closer. I didn't have much of a choice, I couldn't survive being put back into that room and I wasn't about to let Jason ship me out of the country.

So I Used again, letting the power escape my body before I stumbled out the door, letting it slam shut behind me. My legs were having trouble supporting me; my magic and my lack of food were taking its toll me.

I stumbled forwards, my legs giving out underneath me as I fell to the ground. But even in my exhaustion I refused to stop moving. I crawled forward desperately, I needed to get away. I needed my family.

The sound of a gun cocking stopped me in my tracks. I looked up, my eyes coming into contact with Wade's .

"I don't care anymore." I admitted in an exhausted tone. I was done, used up. I was throwing in the towel. He could just kill me, that would make the pain go away. It would make everything so much easier. "Go ahead, just shoot me."

"Sorry," he told me, flashing a half-ass grin "you don't get off that easily."

He brought up his gun and for a second I hoped he'd shoot me. But he didn't; instead he brought it down upon my head and I lost consciousness once again.

* * *

The next time I awoke I was in the back seat of a very fancy car; a Rolls Royce by the look of it. Wade was driving and Jason was seated to my right, eating a sandwich almost mockingly.

I was starving, literally starving. There was telling how much weight I had lost, how much energy had been drained. I was dying, slowly but surely, dying. And there wasn't anything I could do about it. I was at Jason's disposal. If he wanted me to die, I would. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before I starved to death.

Jason noticed the way I was eyeing the sandwich he was so delinquently snacking on. "Hungry?" He asked me, taking another bite and swallowing. I didn't say anything, I didn't need to. "If you behave," He said in a condescending tone "I give you some food on the plane."

"You can't do this to me." I defended with a moan.

"Actually," He corrected "I can, Cameron. I'm doing it right now. I'm doing it to show you that I always get what I want." He paused just long enough to sigh deeply "You know it doesn't have to be this way. If you would just behave, we wouldn't be in this position right now. Would we?"

"No, I'm not going to work for you anymore." I told him, my dry throat causing my voice to crack as I spoke.

"Well that's too bad," Jason said, acting as if he were upset "I thought you might have changed your mind. Not that it matters though, we'll be out of the country soon enough anyway."

"Where are you taking me?" I whispered; desperately trying to gather enough strength so I could sit up to look him in the eye.

"Paris. I'm having my pilot prepare for takeoff; the plane's leaving as soon as we arrive at the airport."Jason told me matter-of-factly, like I didn't get a choice.

I always had a choice, and right now I was choosing not to go with him. I was finally with my family again; I was finally home. I wasn't going to let anyone, even Jason Bradley, take that away from me. Over my dead body. Though, considering my current state, that might be sooner than I would like.

"Don't worry," I assured him "it's not like I'm going to be on the plane when it's leaving anyway."

He just laughed, and laughed, and laughed before shaking his head an answering me "Cameron, who are you trying to fool? You're too weak to fight anyone. Do you really think I'd come this close, just to let you get away from me again?"

"I may be weak, I may be tiered, and I may be starving, but I'm not going with you. I'll fight you with every fiber of my being, I may kill myself in the process, but I am _not_ going with you."

"Cameron," He sighed "I've been so very nice to you so far. That can end now, don't try my patience."

I opened my mouth to respond, to come back with some sort of snarky retort, but before I could speak the car stalled, bring us to a completely stop on the deserted Boston streets. It was well past midnight, no one was around but Jason wasn't taking any chances. He pulled out a gun before looking at his bodyguard.

"Wade," He ordered "Go figure out what's going on."

"Where were we?"Jason asked, turning around to look at me. "Oh, yes. We were just talking about how you're convinced I'm going to let you go after everything you've done to me."

I pushed away from him, stealthily, slowly and none discretely. I felt behind myself for a door handle, pulling on it in a desperate attempt to open the door. It didn't work. This door was locked.

"Cameron, Cameron, Cameron," Jason smiled "Did you really think I wouldn't think of locking the door?"

It was now or never. This was my last chance. If I didn't act now, then I was going to end up God only knows where with Jason, forced to endure endless torture because I refused to return to my old ways. I didn't have much magic left, or energy for that matter. But I didn't care. If I died now, at least I'd die as myself.

Muttering something under my breath, I reached for my magic, only to have it slip away.

"What was that?" Jason asked, satisfied when nothing happened.

"Agus lig mé cad é atá tú a dhéanamh toil shaor." I repeated using the Gaelic tongue, the langue of my mother's ancestors, and one of the most powerful spells I knew. But in my current state it didn't do much. I felt the energy fly out of me, Jason was stunned, the door of the car flew open and I stumbled out, falling to the ground and dragging my body as far as I could using pure adrenaline.

I heard a shout and looked up, looking at Jason as he moved swiftly over to me. He was holding his gun, he waited until I was looking at him before he pulled back the hammer, a completely derange, sadistic look in his eyes.

"You're coming with me Cameron, either the easy way or the hard way. I have no objects with you being in a body bag when we get to France." His hand shook as he held the gun, a finger sliding over the trigger.

"She's not going anywhere with you." Pogue's deep, controlling voice sounded, taking control of the situation.

I looked behind Jason and breathed a sigh of relief. My cousin, all the sons and even Ben, was here. They came to help me. They found me when I needed them the most.

Jason walked over to me, pulling up my week, limp body with one swift motion. I couldn't do anything to fight him, I was too tired, I couldn't…

He held up the gun, pressing it to my temple as he stepped backwards, creating as much distance between the boys and us as was possible.

"It's over, Jason." Ben yelled. "We've already dealt with Wade; it's just you against all of us now."

"She's mine!" Jason yelled, flailing the gun around in a desperate attempt to create fear. "She's mine!" He repeated, aiming the gun at Tyler's head. And that's when I lost it.

"You aren't hurting any of them." I hissed, literally feeling my body cave in, the power consume me, energy leave me and my eyes turn black. "Ever."

Jason flew backwards, slamming dangerously into a wall. His body was limp, he was unmoving, and unresponsive. But I wasn't done with him yet.

I brought up a hand, waving it slightly. He slammed against the wall again, and again, and again. Blood poured out lacerations on his skins, his arms were broken, his leg looked demented, but I didn't care. I wanted to hurt him more. But I couldn't.

I blinked, and suddenly everything became a heck of a lot harder to handle.

My legs, the ones that had been mercilessly supporting me only moments before, gave out from underneath me. I crashed to the ground, my body falling into a catastrophic heap.

It was over; I was over. I had nothing left; I had nothing left to give. Darkness clouded my vision, my body was completely numb and, for the first time in a long time, I felt nothing.

If this was death's shadowed hand, I welcomed it. For there was nothing else I could offer life, I was finished, done, consumed. I felt a pair of icy hands touch down upon me and knew everything would be alright.

I was at peace.


	13. Forgive Me Now

_And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years._

Pain is a relative term.

A headache can cause you pain, a hang nail, a stubbed toe or any other number or things.

But this, what I was currently feeling, was so much worse.

A small moan escaped my lips as I did my best to force open my heavy eye lids. Painfully white walls greeted me as I tried to sit up. Agony erupted in my left arm. I looked down, noticing the white plaster encasing it.

"I broke my arm?" I muttered to myself. "When did I break my arm?"

I looked around the room, noticing the beeping machinery and a sleeping Tyler for the first time. He sat in one of the hospital chairs, leather jacket stretched out across his lap as a steady stream of snoring sounded from him.

What had happened to me? Why was I in a hospital?

I could remember the mall, running into Ben, going to see Gale…Then running into Wade. The events flooded back to me, I could remember that room, Jason, the events in the car, my cousin and his friends and, lastly, my outburst.

I lay there thinking for a bit. What had happened after that?

I wasn't sure, I didn't know. But I did know one thing, my body was aching and my hunger was driving me insane. My stomach was empty; my body was tiered because whatever food they had been giving me wasn't anywhere near enough for me.

I needed food for everything to go back to normal back and for my body to heal.

My choices were limited. I didn't even think about it as I carefully removed my I.V and the tubes stuck in my nose before attached the little pulse keeping pads to Tyler. He didn't stir, not even when I grabbed his jacket off of his lap and put it on.

I was cold, not to mention the jacket was so large it successfully hid the scrubs I was wearing from view. Fishing into the pockets, I pulled out Tyler's leather wallet, grinning in satisfaction when I noticed the money inside.

"Don't worry Tyler," I told the sleeping boy quiet enough not to wake him up "I'll pay you back, I promise."

Shoving the wallet back into the pocket I silently made my way to the door and opened it slightly before peaking my head out. After making sure no one was coming I tip-toed out the room, shutting the door quietly behind myself.

Hospitals sucked ass. Seriously.

They were filled with a bunch of annoying authority figures who were convinced they were 100% right, 100% of the time. Well, I can tell you from experience, they weren't.

Take now for instance; I had been hospitalized for something, though I wasn't specifically sure what, and I was still somehow managing to suffer from lack of food. You think they'd notice the starving girl situated in the hospital bed…Apparently not.

This train of thought was what I used to justify me sneaking out my hospital room with the intention of getting some food out of the cafeteria. Not that my excuse would do anything to tame the anger of any hospital staff member who caught me out of my room.

I pulled the ninja card, creep down the hallway without alerting anyone.

Of course that all went out the window as soon as a whole slew nurses decided now would be a good time to walk down the hall.

I ducked into a room, letting out a sigh of relief when I gently clicked the door shut behind me, affectively cutting me off from the staff.

"You know," I deep, masculine voice laughed. "If you're ducking into random rooms to avoid the nurses, you _probably _shouldn't be out of bed."

I jumped slightly, my body reflexively turning around to look at whoever the voice belonged to. A tall boy two or three years older then me stood by the hospital bed, a smile plaster on his flawless face, his dark blue eyes twinkled in amusement.

He was attractive, _very_ attractive. Just his entire appearance in general…He was so charismatic, he had only said a few words to me and yet I was already foolishly grinning at him. And his body, he was so frekin' _muscular_.

I couldn't help but wonder if-

'_Snap out of it Cameron!'_ the subconscious part of my mind yelled at me. '_Snap out of it!'_

"I, I…" I was babbling like an idiot. Guys _never_ left me tongue tied, I always knew what to say to them, whether it was a witty comeback or some flirtatious smile… But this guy, I didn't know what to say.

The boy let off another laugh, his body shaking as he chuckled. He stuck out his hand, a huge smile on his face.

"I'm Chase." He told me "Chase Collins."

I shook my head slightly, doing my best to snap myself out of whatever was inflicting me.

I walked over to Chase, extending my own hand and offering him a small smile, "I'm Cameron Parry."

Our hands touched, my head spun, and pictures formed within my mind.

Spiders. Hundreds and hundreds of spiders, scurrying across the floor and up the walls. That's not what bothered me the most; two unrecognizable girls lay on two separate beds; spiders crawled over them, up their bodies in into their noses.

My legs buckled underneath me and I found myself kneeling on the floor, still engrossed in the vision. My stomach curled, my body heaved and I knew if there had been anything in my stomach, I would have thrown it up.

And then it stopped and a hand was being waved in front of my face.

I blinked.

"Are you alright?" Chase asked, furrowing his eyebrows in concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I said flashing him a smile. That was weird, what the heck did this guy have to do with spiders? "Just a little spacey, that's all."

Yeah, spacey because that vision successfully weirded me out. It took a lot to weird me out.

"So what?" He asked as his face relaxed into a smile "They have you in here for head trauma?"

"No," I admitted as I forced myself onto my feet, my head spinning due to lack of food."Severe dehydration."

At least that's what I assumed it was.

"And that's how you broke your arm?" He asked me, eyebrows raised.

"No, that's just…Actually, I have no idea how this happened." I admitted with a small laugh.

"Well that's always comforting." He muttered.

"Yeaaaaah…"I said, bouncing slightly on the heels of my feet. "So what are you doing here?"

"I was in a car accident." He admitted as he frowned slightly.

"Are you alright?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He shook his head "But my parents aren't…They, uh, they died."

"I'm so sorry!" I told him, my hand flying to my chest. "Are you alright?"

"It's hard." He admitted, "But I'm sure it'll get easier eventually."

"Yeah, it does." I promised him with a nod "It takes a long time but it does get better."

"You lost your family?" He asked.

"Yeah," I confessed, "A car accident, two and a half years ago. I lost my parents and older brother."

"I'm sorry to hear that." He told me.

"It sucks, doesn't it?" I asked, but before he could answer my stomach let off an annoyingly loud growl.

"Hungry, I take it." He said with a laugh.

"Yeah, sorry."

"It's fine, go get something to eat." He told me with a small smile.

"Thanks, I'll see you later." I told him, raising a hand in farewell.

"Actually, I'm being discharged so I'm leaving." He told me apologetically "But I have a feeling we'll see each other again."

"Ok," I smiled as I gave him a nod. "I'll see you around Chase."

I made my way to the door, sticking my head out to make sure no one was coming before scurrying into the elevator and hitting the button for the ground floor.

The elevator was empty, thankfully. It was pretty obvious I shouldn't be wondering around the hospital. I hadn't even bothered looking in a mirror before I left me room; God only knows what I looked like.

I picked up a tray, ignoring onlookers as I piled it high with hotdogs, hamburgers, pie, cake, fruit, vegetables, and whatever else I could shove onto it.

The look on the cashier's face when I went to pay for my meal? Priceless, absolutely priceless.

"Is that all for you?" She asked, her mouth hanging wide open.

I rolled my eyes, "How much?"

"You know, we're really not supposed to be giving food to patients." She told me. "And by the look of things you shouldn't even be out of bed."

"This," I said, holding up a fifty "Is for the food. This," I said, holding up another one "Is for you if you promise not to mention anything to the hospital staff."

"Enjoy your food!" She told me with a smile as she accepted the money.

Turning around I looked at each of the tables, trying to spot an empty one I could sit at. In the end, I didn't need to sit at an empty table; my cousin, Reid, Caleb and Ben were seated at one already, empty expressions on their faces as they chewed absent mindedly on some food.

"Hey," I said, sliding into a seat as I placed my tray on the table and picked up a sandwich "What's up?"

No one said any as I bit into my sandwich, their mouths hung open in surprise and no one knew what to say.

"What the hell are you doing?" Reid finally demanded, pulling the sandwich away before I could take another bite.

"Give that back!" I demanded, lunging for the sandwich. Before I could grab it Reid pulled it out of reach. I went to grab some more food off of the tray but it was pulled away, this time by Pogue.

"What are you doing out of bed?" Pogue asked right as Caleb demanded "Where's Tyler?"

"I'm hungry!" I spat, trying to grab something off of the tray. "I need food."

"No," Pogue corrected, "You need to get your ass back into bed."

"I'm fine, I'm just a little hungry." I told him defensively, but the boys just stared at me. "What?"

"You've been in a coma for two weeks." Ben informed me, a bitter expression on his face.

"What?" I whispered, hoping I had seriously misheard Ben. "Are you serious?"

"The doctors weren't sure just how hurt you were. They said they'd figure out the extent of the damage if you woke up." Pogue told me, shaking his head. "If, Cameron, _if _you woke up. Do you have any idea," His voice caught in his throat and he ran a hand down his face. "You were missing for over a week."

I had lost three weeks of my life because of Jason, three weeks I could never get back.

"What happened?" I asked "I mean, how'd you guys…"

"The tracked me down, it took 'em a while though. After that it was all a matter of following your aura. Which wasn't easy, by the way, by the time we found you in that stupid car it was virtually nonexistent. You were tapped, still are I'd imagine." Ben answered.

"I'm not tapped!" I snapped. No way was I tapped, tapped meant I had no magic left in my body. It meant I'd have to wait till it gradually came back. I had a specific store of magic, when it was gone it was gone until it could rebuild itself. "No way am I tapped after being in a coma for two weeks!"

"We thought you died." Caleb responded.

"I still might, if you guys don't hand over the food." I told him, reaching over the table and grabbing the tray from my distracted cousin.

"No Cammie, you _need_ to get back in bed." Pogue told me roughly.

"I _need_ food first." I told him.

"We could have brought you food." Caleb tried to ease the situation.

"You wouldn't have brought enough." I turned my attention to Ben. "How much weight did I lose?"

Ben hesitated for a second before speaking up. "Thirty five pounds."

"How the heck did you lose so much?" Pogue demanded.

I grimaced slightly. That put me _way_ below the recommended weight for someone of my size.

"I just need to down this and I'll be fine." I said, ignoring Pogue's question.

"I don't think so," Pogue answered, standing up as he leaned over to grab the tray from me. "You can't eat that much food, you'll make yourself sick."

"No I won't." I told him as I took a bite of a burger. "I need to eat about this much or things are going to get really bad, really soon."

"Oh yeah," Reid said sarcastically, "Binge eating is always a good thing."

"She has a fast metabolism guys, she needs to eat way more than a normal to survive and maintain her magic. Jason probably didn't feed her much." Ben told the boys defensively.

I shuttered. I had no interest in reliving the memories of the time during my captivity. Instead I finished up my second burger and picked up a hot dog.

"Or at all." Reid added as I downed the hot dog in two bites.

"Who's jacket is that anyway?" Pogue asked me.

"Tyler's. I took his jacket and barrowed some money from him." I shrugged, "What can I say, I'm kinda really hungry."

"Don't worry, we've noticed." Reid smirked, earning him a slap across the back of the head from Caleb.

"What happened when you guys caught up to me?" I asked cautiously as I picked up a fork and tried to eat some cake.

"We stalled the car," Pogue sighed "You got out, then you passed out and we called 9-1-1."

"What happened to him?" I asked. "Jason, I mean."

All four boys exchanged a look.

"Camera," Ben began, extending a hand to touch mine comfortingly. This couldn't be good. "He was taken into custody, but about a week ago he was released on bail. He hasn't been seen since."

I felt my stomach drop as the words sunk in. No one knew where he was. He was missing. Which meant on thing. He may be gone now, but he'd be back, he'd come for me again.

A squeak of fear escaped my lips.

"Cameron," Pogue soothed, giving Ben a look that implied he wanted to kill him. "That bastard's never getting anywhere near you again. Ever. Do you understand?" He asked.

He made me look in his eyes, a determined look on his face. I nodded, not sure if I believed him.

"He's never going to touch you again." Caleb assured me as both Ben and Reid nodded.

"I'm never going to let him touch me again." I whispered to myself but the boys heard anyway. They exchanged a worried look before looking back at me.

"Damn it!" I swore, throwing my fork down in frustration. This wasn't working at all.

"What's wrong?" Reid asked with a small laugh.

"I can frekin' eat with a busted arm!" I groaned.

"You just down like 12 burgers and 8 hotdogs." Reid pointed out.

"Yeah, well, I'm still wicked hungry and this stupid cast is a pain in the butt." I muttered.

"You're left handed?" Caleb asked and I just rolled my eyes.

"Obviously." I glared at the cake.

"How long have you been left handed?" Reid asked.

"Uh, I dunno, only about fifteen years or so." I snapped sarcastically. "I could always…" I trailed off, glancing at my arm as I considered my possibilities.

"Don't even think about it!" Ben told me sternly. "You're tapped, remember?"

"I'm not tapped, and this cast's wicked annoying!" I answered.

"I don't care if it's 'wicked annoying', you can't heal it, not in your condition." Ben warned.

" I'll be fine." I told him.

"Ok, prove it." Ben said, picking up a straw and putting it on the table. "Turn it invisible."

"No problem." I said smugly, reaching for my magic before anyone could protest. It was there, just barely. I hit it with too much force, it flew out, and a microwave exploded. I felt for my magic again, there wasn't any. "Ok, so _now _I'm tapped." I told Ben before assessing the blown up microwave, "Ops."

"Ops?" Pogue asked as my eyes started to flutter shut. "Ops? Do you have any idea how idiotically stupid that was? You could have-"

"Pogue," Caleb cut him off as my eyes shut completely and my head started to bob up and down in exhaustion. "It'll be alright, we'll work on her control as soon as she's out of here."

"Come on," Pogue sighed, walking over to me and picking me up bridal style. "Let's get you back into bed."

"No!" I protested, struggling against him. I didn't want to go back to the room. "I don't wanna go back there, I wanna go home."

My cousin stopped, looking down at me "Home?" He asked.

"Yeah, home. You remember home don't you? Ipswich Massachusetts, a Podunk little town whose population is virtually nonexistent. Yep, that's my home! Geese, I thought you'd know, considering I live with you and everything. " I told him, sarcasm dripping from my voice.

His mouth twitched upwards into a smile before becoming a straight line again. "Yeah, I remember. You've just never called it home before."

"Well, it _is_ my home. So can we go there?" I asked, forcing myself out of his hold and to my feet as I ignored my spinning head.

Pogue didn't get a chance to answer before a frantic looking nurse entered the cafeteria, followed closely behind by Tyler.

"Dude, Pogue! I can't find your cousin. She-" Tyler stopped talking and breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of me. "Never mind, I found her."

"Oh my goodness!" The nurse said, running over to me. "You shouldn't be standing, let alone out of bed!"

"I'm fine." I said, trying to brush her concern off with a wave of my hand.

"No," Pogue laughed as my eyes fluttered close again and my body began to sway in exhaustion. "You're not, but you will be."

Pogue didn't give me the chance to respond before he picked me up. I started to struggle, hating to be 'man handled' after everything that had happened to me.

"It's gonna be ok Cam." Pogue promised me. "It's gonna be ok. I'll keep you safe. You're home."

And, unlike every time he had said it before, I actually believed him. I snuggled into my cousin's chest, letting my eyes flicker shut as he carried me to safety.

* * *

**A/N: So I'm not 100% sure about this chapter. I hope it didn't suck as badly as I think it did...**

**Ok, I know I've asked this before but I'm looking for someone to edit my chapters before I post them. I had someone message me about it before...But I accidentally deleted the massage, so sorry person, I wasn't ignoring you!...But if anyone is even remotely interested, please drop me a message. (I won't even delete it this time!)  
**


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